Chaotic Intervention
by Toasty Kit
Summary: Getting interrupted is annoying. So when some outside force sends me off mid one-liner to God knows where at the end of one of the most important fights in Ninja History then you'd better believe that I'd be a little bit more than pissed off. Unfortunately for me it's kind of hard to focus on being pissed when there are robots, monsters and all powerful God-Machines everywhere.
1. Chapter 1: An Intervention

Chapter 1: An Intervention

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Final Fantasy**

**Author's Notes:**

**While I was rewriting this I couldn't help but notice the similarities between the festival I wrote about and The Vytal Festival from RWBY. Funny considering when I wrote this chapter Volume 3 wasn't even close to coming out yet.**

**Anyways, for those of you reading for the first time, this story is currently undergoing extensive renovation. So. while going further won't hurt the overarching plot, don't be surprised if you end up running into inconsistencies.**

* * *

-Cocoon: Unknown Facility-

In a room illuminated solely by an array of televisions two men sat as still as death. From the emblems on their uniforms to the style of their weaponry their appearance screamed military. On an active day the two may have emanated waves of authority or even fear - but on this specific day, with matching glazed stares decorating their faces- that statement couldn't have been further away from the truth.

It was only after several failed attempts to keep the drool from slipping from his mouth did one of the guards muster up enough courage to rouse a conversation out of his equally bored companion.

"Hey," he verbally nudged in a voice just loud enough to steer away his fellow guard from slumber.

"Yeah," the other guard yawned out.

"Do you even wonder why we're here?" He offered.

"It's one of life's great mysteries isn't it? Why are we here?" The man then raised his hand to his eyes as if they held the key to universe in their grasps.

"I mean...are we the product of some cosmic coincidence? Or is there really a God? Watching over everything, you know? With a plan for us and stuff." His voice slowed to a disturbed crawl. "I dunno man. But it keeps me up at night…"

The one who initiated the conversation turned back to his co-worker with an incredulous stare. A pen fell off the desk and on to the floor. The noise it generated set off an explosion in the following silence.

"What?!"

" ...um"

"I meant, why are we in here? In this room?"

"Oh...I...uhhhh yeah," the soldier muttered out as he tried to squeeze as much of his flustered expression under the brim of his military cap as humanly possible.

"What was all that stuff about God?"

"Uhhh...hm, nothing." He said trying to sweep away his existential crisis under the rug as fast as possible.

"You wanna talk about it?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"But seriously though why are in here? As far as I can tell this place is just an unmarked building in the middle of Bodhum, with almost no way in or out."

"Um hm."

"I mean the only reason why we built a facility here is because they decided to all go to sleep here." He stated while pointing the camera feed depicting a room filled to the brim with crystallized, human shaped figurines in disdain. In his outrage the soldier hardly noticed the electrical show beginning to flicker into the screens.

"Right, because we're meant to help them just in case they wake up."

"Will they though?"

"Well…" This time the soldier decided to only offer the slightest of answers to rouse an explanation. There was no way that he was going to show someone his guts again without being one hundred percent sure that he knew where the conversation was headed.

"I mean we hardly know what how becoming a l'cie works. The only thing we're sure about is that they're made to fulfill a Focus then turn to crystal when their done. No one said anything about them coming back." He finished, finally slumping back into his chair.

"What's up with that anyways? I mean I joined PSICOM to fight Pulse but here I am sitting all day in some no name building, watching a bunch of statues. Talk about a waste of resources; we should be going down there you know, take the fight to them."

"Yeah no shit. That's why they should put us in-"

"-n trying to make me Give Up!" Without warning a broken declaration blared across through the audio of the camera feed. With just hearing the audio they could register the conviction of the powerful voice that was filled with purpose, enough so to send a shiver down the pair of military grunts' spines despite having no idea what it was talking about.

"Who the hell was that?" One of the guards said before snapping to attention toward the cameras, scrambling to find the source of the intruder's voice. The other guard immediately followed his co-worker's example.

After some effort the two manage to trace back the voice to a storage room adjacent to the hall that contained the facility's batch of Cocoon l'cie that had completed their focus.

"What is that?" Inside the room, nestled in between the room's assorted collection of boxes, sat a single pulsating orb of light that steadily grew brighter as the seconds went by.

Before either of the guards could offer any impute as what exactly they were looking at the shining orb suddenly flashed brighter than rays of the Phoenix, rendering the two into piles of crying excuses for men as well as frying the camera along with every electronic device inside the building.

* * *

Inside the Hall of L'cie a single teenage boy stood in a slightly crouched stance encircled by the glowing masses of crystal. From his position, along with the gaping hole behind him, one could deduce that he was the culprit behind the destruction. But when given closer inspection-with his lean build, orange clothes, and bright blond hair – he hardly looked like the type capable of wreaking havoc worthy of a Behemoth. And yet there he stood alone among the rumble, hand outstretched as if he plowed through a twenty inch thick wall of pure concrete with brute strength alone. Uzumaki Naruto truly was a terrifying sight.

"Eh? What's going on? Could this be another one of Pein's techniques?" He muttered to himself, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings with a vacant stare.

One thing that he learned while fighting the man with a fetish for piercings is that the Rinnegan was a powerful tool. So powerful in fact that it could be considered cheating worthy of a rank of its own amongst all the other cheating bloodlines that plagued the ninja world. Slap on a pair of diseased looking eyes on a normal human being and all of a sudden they could control gravity, manipulate six bodies at once, and shoot rockets out of their torsos. And that wasn't even all of them! The amount of broken, non-ocular related powers that **dojutsu**(eye technique)users seemed to pull out their asses these days was bullshit.

That being said, despite all of the gifts that the Rinnegan bestowed up its wielder not a single one of them was tailored toward genjutsu. Granted, even if Pein did know any he seemed are from the type to bother with deception considering his zealotry and destructive nature. With how much that guy's god complex went, he probably considered illusions far too "human" to bother with or maybe he wasn't that good at it.

A grimace formed on the blonds face at the unfruitful thoughts as he took the time to take a closer look at the strange crystal statues.

At the mere mention of "fruit" the boy collapsed to a knee. A sudden sharp pain stabbed into his navel stronger than any jutsu. It was so agonizing that he barely managed to catch his fall on one of the statue's legs. His vision swam with colors, mind blank. The feverish aura of a wounded animal marred his whiskered features before he screamed at the top of his lungs-

"GOD DAMN IT, I'M SO HUNGRY!"

"…"

"I was fighting on an empty stomach for HOURS! Oh, sure I was serious during that fight!"

"..."

"So serious in fact that I probably looked like a badass without ever trying! But that doesn't stop the fact that I didn't even get to have a single bite to eat before the guy decided to level EVERYTHING!"

"..."

"I had to stop my own stomach from growling in the middle of a fight where the lives of literally everyone were on the line! Do you know how hard it is in stopping a body function from happening, when it's the only thing your body can think about!?"

"..."

"I mean it's bad enough that chakra exhaustion causes hunger but I had to train for WEEKS on that god damned mountain with only BUGS for food! FU-CKING BUGS!"

"..."

Naruto was so engrossed in his rant that he hardly registered the images of titanic machines, falling moon worlds or glowy god-things flashing before his vision with a sense of purpose. And if he was ignoring important events happening in his own mind's eye you'd better believe that he completely oblivious to the stupid amount of soldiers that had filled the room while he was lost in his insanity.

It was when the boy began to retch in between sobs that sounded remotely of "cricket stew" that one of the men decided to voice his concerns, "Hey."

"Yeah," one of his fellow squad mates answered back, his gun still remain ramrod at the target, tracing every overly dramatic motion with as much vigor as a cat to a laser pointer.

"Shouldn't we, you know? Arrest him? He did kind of break into a military base and all." He said with an eager undertone. The urgency was more for him than for the well-being of their assets. The boy hardly seemed like a threat and his arms were starting to cramp up bad.

"We should but the sarge hasn't given the order yet." The two glanced over at the only one out of them wearing a different outfit. It was a miracle that he was able to stand there looking so professional in this given situation.

"Why not?" His stance slacked, an event that repeated with several of his squad mates scattered across the room. "We've had plenty of time to engage. The idiot's been going on about bugs and wanting food for over five minutes." Unbeknownst to the two the "idiot's" eyes had flashed red at the mere mention of food. At speeds faster than any of the troops could register the previously hysterical blond crossed the gap between the center of the room and the soldier.

A feat that the unlucky soldier had no time to marvel at given the single steel tight grip hoisting him up by his collar.

"Do. You. Have. Ramen?" Any traces of the silly boy had left entirely; the vibrant blue eyes peering straight through the man's helmet were that of a predator.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see his sergeant signaling the rest of the forces to hold their fire. If they opened fire right now they could seriously risk hitting him.

"Wha-What?" The private managed to croak out, trying to keep the perpetrator busy while he reached for the stun baton in his back pocket.

"You mentioned food. Ramen. It's my favorite. Do you have any?" The pressure of the boy's presence made it harder to breathe than it already was, let alone speak. Even so, no matter how difficult it was, he had to keep the boy talking to create an opening for his squad mates. If he answered poorly the situation could go even further south than it already was. He had to keep it simple, something that wouldn't press any buttons.

"Ra-men? Wha-What's that?"

The air chilled to freezing.

The sound of his sweat crashed on the metal floor louder than any bullet.

He could see something inside those crazed, blue eyes snap.

"Don't." The fingers began to tighten to the point that he could hear the metal in the teen's hands warping in his grip. "You dare." The one literary holding his life in their hand began to raise him higher. "Fuck with me!" Before tossing the man with all his might at one of the other soldiers.

As the soldier's helmet crashed into the torso of one of his comrades a single thought rung in his mind. "Yup, definitely the wrong answer…"

* * *

-Outside of the Facility-

Yaag Rosch, a tall man with a lean build with silver hair that was sported in a pony-tail, was not having a good day. After months of continuous efforts to The Sanctum the newly minted officer had managed to secure a few days of vacation time to visit the seaside city of Bodhum. He had even planned ahead of time to ensure that he would be able to afford missing these days exactly.

Why all the effort you ask?

Bodhum was a beautiful city bearing a grocery list of attractions that tourist flocked to like insects to fly paper. From white sandy beaches to the factory in possessing of the Fal'cie: Kujata in charge of supplying Cocoon with power Bodhum seemed to have a little of everything for all walks of life. But Rosch was not such a frivolous man to fall for such obvious Gill sinks. No, what motivated him to go so far to secure these past few days was not Bodhum itself but rather what was happening at this time of year in this city specifically.

The Festival of New Light.

A celebration honoring those willing to give up their lives for the sake of the citizens of Cocoon. Every year a new city would be selected at random to host the festivities. During these next few days the streets of the host city would be choked with food stalls, vendors and street performer meant to entertain the masses. But these were only the side dishes.

The main event took place in a massive, circular ship that traveled with the festival from city to city each year. There the top students of Cocoon's military academies would compete for prestige and glory.

And he was missing the semi-finals because PSICOM apparently didn't trust the idiots in charge of their little pet projects enough to go without inspection.

_"Can't say I blame them though,"_ he thought as he moved to input the pass code to the only door leading in or out of the building. It was kind of hard for an Anti-Pulse task force to get any action when the last conflict with Pulse had taken place centuries ago. A large part of their force was so inexperienced that they wouldn't even stand a chance against the students participating in the festival.

As the door flung open a red glow splashed over his sharp features accompanied by the tell-tale cry of an alarm. Operatives of the facility were racing down the halls haphazardly, with clumps of uncertain men and women following those who had an inkling of confidence with as much grace as a horde of toddlers with two left feet. Oh sure, they were following protocol but they were doing so badly that it might have actually been more effective for everyone to just run around the building at random until something happened.

Calmly, he approached one of the more competent looking soldiers, the likes of which saluted the moment their visor caught sight of the commendations decorating his jacket.

"Corporal, status report.." Rosch ordered smoothly while making a gesture to drop the salute.

"At 1500 hours we received word from technical of abnormal energy signature in the L'cie Containment Ward. Shortly after some kind of...pulse traveled through the building that momentarily shut down every piece of technology in our possession."

"A pulse you say. An EMP perhaps?" It wouldn't be the first instance of radicals striking back at figures of powers. However, the number of cases involving anything more grand than the occasional vandalized wall could be counted on a single hand. The credibility of which barely surpassed the sightings of Palumpolum's sea monster, Lessie.

"That's what we suspected at first too but the blackout only lasted for about twenty minutes."

"Interesting…" He almost blew off the problem as an instance of faulty wiring before letting his assumptions slip his mind. Even the greenest of recruits wouldn't panic like the ones before him over something so simple. "Please continue."

"As a safety precaution Sargent Gibbons gathered Alpha and Beta Squadron to investigate." A little excessive but if it did turn out to be terrorism then two full squads should be more than enough to apprehend those responsible. "At 1530 hours we lost contact with the investigation team."

"I see–Wait! What did you just say!?" The Inspection Officer's calm disposition took a full one eighty faster than a Chocobo to Gysahl Greens. A standard squad of PSICOM troops consist of no less than four soldiers. Meaning that those responsible for the breach in security had to be numerous enough or formidable enough to take down two full squads of trained soldiers. And that wasn't even including those in the team trained to handle monsters. "Were the security teams at least able to identify the enemy?"

"Negative, Sir. The investigation team went down prior to surveillance reestablishing a visual." Twenty minutes, that's how long the electronic had been offline. In that amount of time an unknown force had been able to infiltrate a heavily guarded facility, eliminate at least nine men, and then slip off the radar entirely. Sensing his commanding officer's unease the soldier decided to add on to his report. "For what it's worth Sir, the medical team was able to determine that the squads who engaged the enemy suffered no lasting damage."

Yaag Rosch could see what the soldier was trying to do. He was trying to comfort him. Unfortunately, that last bit of information had the opposite effect. Contrary to popular belief, it actually took much more skill to take down a foe without killing them than it was to use lethal force. Meaning that whoever was responsible was an even greater threat than he previously thought. Seeing how unsure the Corporal's other squad mates seemed it would look like it was up to him to take action.

"You!" The silver haired man barked suddenly, startling the one debriefing him.

"Yes!"

"Radio everyone. I want all active PSICOM forces here at once."

"Everyone sir?"

Seeing the questionable stance that the soldier's body language took, Rosch decided to explain, "Our enemy is a formidable one but no matter how skilled they are they will still have to leave once their objective is complete."

The soldier nodded in understanding, "And since this is the only entrance they will have to come in leave through here as well."

"Precisely, with our men shielding the exit; the intruders will have no way to escape."

"Freedom!" At that moment an orange blur rushed past through the door that he had neglected to seal in his shock toward the disheveled state that he had found the facility in.

"...Corporal."

"Yes, Sir?"

"What was that?"

"It would appear that that was the intruder..uh Sir."

"He was wearing orange...and had bright blond hair."

"I do recall the medical teams mentioning the downed soldiers muttering that."

Rosch brought a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. Blonde hair, orange clothing, and a teenager from what his eyes were able to catch of his build. That was the person who sent a building of Cocoon's elite Special Forces into panic. It was enough to almost make him sick.

"Cancel that last order Corporal."

"But sir he's heading toward the city. Shouldn't we conjure up a force to apprehend him?" One of the other soldiers under the Corporal's command finally decided to make himself known.

"The Festival of New Light is well underway. Currently there are more civilians in Bodhum then there will ever be in decades. Such a blatant display of military force will only cause panic."

"But-"

"The matter was out of our jurisdiction the second he stepped foot outside of this building. All we can do is alert the Guardian Corps that a criminal is at large. It shouldn't take them that long considering his outlandish appearance." The soldiers finally seemed to let the matter drop before carrying on with their duties prior to the scare.

The PSICOM Officer let out an exasperated sigh as the last of the squad disappeared around the corner. While his words seemed to have worked on the troops they did little to soothe his own nerves. Even with the boy's less than intimidating appearance that didn't change the fact that he single-handedly took down two whole squadrons in record time. He was banking the safety of thousands on the hunch that, from the way he incapacitated the guards, that he had no real intentions to hurt anyone. Even if he was right that did little to settle the matter.

After all there are more ways to spread terror than just killing people.

* * *

-The Stadium of New Light-

The world was chaos. The blaring music of the tournament doing little to drown out the chorus of drunken laughter and cheering parents. Noise makers seemed more like a requirement in this atmosphere rather than a calling card of a few ravenous fans.

It was in the middle of this hurricane of celebration that a single pink haired girl stood out from her fellow attendees. Like the eye of storm she sat silently while those around her seemed intent on finding out how far the human eardrum could go. Though, even with her quiet disposition not a single person would be able to call the girl cold. The manner that she carried herself emanated a warmth and gentleness not unlike that of a mother. In fact the, only factor that could be considered off putting about her was the furious manner that she wrote in her tablet.

This girl, who looked more like a fairy in comparison to the hulking fans to her left and right, was none other than Serah Farron – a simple girl of thirteen years with a knack for school work. A passion that managed to worm its way into even the most ridiculous of situations, the report on her tablet being a testament to that. Her work ethic only wavered when the booming voice of the announcer decided to add even more noise to the equation.

**"Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen to The Festival of New Light: Tournament Semi-Finals!"** The airship turned stadium shook in approval. **"For those of you just tuning in, today's students will be battling it out to determine who has the right to move on to the main event!"**

**"That's right Jon whoever comes out on top today will get the opportunity to elect one of their members to move on to the Singles Rounds where we will find out just which one of Cocoon's fabulous academies is truly the best choice out there for your own budding little soldiers."**

**"Now without further a due let's introduce our combatants."**

A massive floating television suddenly appeared before the tournament attendees. **"In the blue corner, the ones who have been Decimating the competition in every trial that they been in these past few days – You know 'em, You love 'em: Team Rygdea of Nautilus!" **At the cue the screen lit up the four students wearing blue uniforms like giants, the team's scruffy leader beaming like a maniac as the arena erupted in praise. An act that Serah took no part in. It was the next team that would make her heart skip a beat.

**"Their opponents have had all odds against them from the very beginning but proved themselves to be more than a match for the competition. The red corner's Underdogs of the Underdogs: Team Lightning of Bodhum!" **A grand majority of the crowd cheered even louder for the team representing their home town.

"YEAH! YOU GO SIS!" The school girl's normally timid nature jumped up along with its owner, her outburst loud enough to surprise even the beast of a man sitting beside her. The face of red team's leader held a look of pure concentration as she stared down her foes, only shifting to a ghost of a smile when she spotted a spot of pink similar to her own in the sea of bodies.

Serah couldn't stop smiling. It may have been the fifth day of the tournament but every single time the sight of her sister there in the arena never got old. To even qualify for a position in the festival a student had to be in the top ten in the whole school. Lightning had done all that and more, scoring the leadership position on the Bodhum Military Academy team as a first year! A feat that had been completely unheard of up until now.

The thought of her older sister's work ethic caused her grin to slip a little bit. Lightning the name was still hard for her to say despite her sister using the moniker for over a year now.

As a student of one of Cocoon's most prestigious academies her sister was already being paid to go to school. Adding up the bonuses to being one of top ten as well as her school being sponsored by The Sanctum meant that Lightning was making more money a month as a student than many did working full time. Food and lodging were paid for by the school and finishing all three years even guaranteed an officer position straight out of graduation.

It wasn't easy though.

Going to a prestigious school herself Serah already had quite the workload. But that is nothing compared to the amount of school work that Lightning has to maintain just to stay in! That combined with the entire fitness requirement that each student is forced to undergo causes military academies to have the highest turnover rate for dropouts/failures of all the schools.

And it was all being done...for her.

* * *

-Festival Grounds-

With fresh air in his system and food in his belly, our blond finally felt comfortable enough to sit back and focus on things a little less...primal. The main question being: Where he was? And the second being: How did he get here?

These were the thoughts that plagued the blonde's mind as he fiddled with a couple of the plastic cards that went for money around here in the pocket of his new coat. "Borrowing" the likes of which had a cinch with his previous life experiences; much more so with how many people seemed to be spamming the things like no tomorrow.

The place was chalk full of tall buildings and narrow alley ways-perfect for slipping into after "relieving" someone of a card or two. When he had first seen them after escaping the facility he almost assumed the worst and had been sent to Rain Country by some unknown member of Akatsuki. Thankfully, his stupid food-deprived brain was still smart enough to realize that it wasn't raining before causing a ruckus.

Now that option A was out of the picture, what else did he have? Spring Country had plenty of cool tech that he couldn't make sense of but all of them thought he was too awesome to even think about harming him. In fact, the only thing that'd hurt while in Spring would be a sore wrist from signing so many autographs.

Not that knocking those two off the list particularly helped. If anything all it did was provide more questions than answers. He needed more information.

Wordlessly, Naruto slipped away from the crowd and into an area away from prying eyes. There his hands autonomously transitioned into the well-practiced cross seal that everyone (especially his enemies) knew and loved. Soon after, a pillar of smoke erupted from the floor; revealing the forms of three individuals of identical likeness to-

Wait three? He swore he'd used enough chakra to make at least ten clones. That last battle must have taken a lot more out of him then he thought. Oh well, no use dwelling on it too much. There were more important things to worry about.

"Spread out and cover as much ground as you can. I don't want you guys dispelling until you've used up all your chakra." Their orders received, the three flashed their creator a salute then proceeded to make themselves scarce.

After surveying to see if anyone had caught wind of the brief engagement Naruto stepped out of the alley way and back into the public.

Blue eyes swiveled in their sockets. The sheer scope of this place was ridiculous. Never in all his travels had he been to a place with such a densely packed amount of people. When compared to the modest dirt paths back home the virtual sea of bodies was almost uncomfortable.

That feeling only increased as the light shifted with the passing time. The new angle causing the crowd to bleed into darkness. A Goliath of a building lording over the streets; huge and menacing like some kind of primordial god ready to wreak havoc on the populace. Calling the obstruction intimidating would be an understatement as the blond tried to wrap his mind around the innumerable amount of man hours that must have gone into creating such an impressive structure. If this place had huge buildings like this all over then perhaps it would be best if he gave his clones a hand in the reconnaissance department.

Fighting his way against the flow of traffic, the blond combed the streets for one of the more friendly looking citizens to talk to. He finally settled on a white haired woman leading along a small boy of similar likeness.

"Hello!" He called out, making sure to raise his voice beyond the volume of his surroundings.

"Hi there! You lost?" The woman blurted out as if she'd just read his mind.

"A little bit! How'd you know?" Naruto responded sheepishly.

"The look on your face," She answered. "It's like you're having trouble taking it all in." His cheeks turned painted red as her expression took on what he presumed was what he looked like. It wasn't exactly the most dashing of looks. "Haha, no need to be embarrassed. Everyone's like that for their first festival."

So there was a festival going on right now. That would explain why there were so many people running around with pockets just begging to be picked.

"Well since you're such a hot shot, do you think you can help me find my way around?"

"I'm not exactly from around here personally so I won't be of much help. But if there's a place you want to get to cities always keep directories around for people just like you." She informed as if she hadn't even heard his snide comment. "I'm pretty sure we passed by one not too far back." Her thumb motioned the direction she came. "Big, flashy things; you can't really miss 'em."

Naruto took her hand, shaking it in gratitude. "Wow, thanks for the help."

"Don't mention it." A smile gracing her features where others would leap back at having their personal space violated. "If you ever find yourself in Palumpolum be sure to stop by my shop: _Cats n Lilies_. I'd be more than happy to give you a tour of the town."

Naruto's unoccupied hand automatically found itself drawn to the back of his head. Even if he didn't know what she was talking about the kindness behind the gesture didn't go over his head.

"I'll be sure to do that...um..." The blond just becoming aware of the crucial bit of information that he lacked in not knowing his helpers name.

"It's Nora. Nora Estheim." The newly identified Nora punctuated by taking control of the blond's erratic shaking.

"Uzu-...uh...Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto quickly corrected himself, allowing Nora to smooth over his eagerness into a much more sedated pace.

"Naruto, huh? Never heard a name like that one in Cocoon."

"I get that a lot." Naruto said, playing it off as just another person who'd been born with an unusual name.

_Cocoon_: so that's where he was. Whether it was the name of the city itself or something on a grander scale was still uncertain. There was also the way people introduced themselves around here. Up until now he'd always thought everyone in the Elemental Nations positioned their family name in front of their given name. Whatever (or whoever) interfered with his fight must have dropped him somewhere really remote. That is, assuming that he was still on the same continent.

On the bright-side, he could start calling it something other than "town with big buildings and lots of people".

He turned his gaze over the child by her side. The likes of which swept into the shadows behind his mother the moment the blond had laid eyes on him.

"Sorry about Hope. He's not very good with people." Nora advised just in case her son's behavior had created a bad impression.

Naruto simply let off a shrug in response. He'd gotten worse reactions in the past. "Well, either way it was nice meeting you."

"Likewise, I hope you find what you're looking for."

"We'll see about that!" Naruto shouted as the distance between them grew.

Once the mother had disappeared into the scenery a feeling of satisfaction swelled into him. People back home were usually too stricken with the whole jinchuuriki thing to pay him any mind. Even the conversations with his friends tended to skew more toward business related things. He couldn't remember the last time he'd talked with a total stranger so casually. It was nice being able to connect with someone you don't have any history with.

* * *

When Nora had told him about a directory he'd imagined an information kiosk or a place he could pick up a brochure. The last thing he'd anticipated was a giant, gaudy sheet of light depicting a map of the city so detailed that it even showed the paths of fair attendees traversing the streets in real time.

This kind of stuff is common place around here? Just this made everything he'd used up until now look like they were made out of rocks and sticks by comparison. He was lucky to have a row of people in between him and the new...whatever the hell it was. If there hadn't been anyone else to learn from he would have probably just used it like a plain old map and miss out on all the other cool (and informative) features he saw others use.

A couple peeled away from the glorified map giggling in each others arms. The moment of reckoning had finally come!

At a snail's pace, Naruto made his way over to the floating screen. His hand shook with hesitation as he reached for the wall a light. A childish wonder etching across his features as he watched the limb phase through its surface. Fingers traveled back and forth across the map. More angles were crossed upon its holographic, none material surface. A second set of fingers came into play; poking and prodding in the same manner a cat would with a common household. Completely enamored by the existence of something painfully mundane.

The teen would have gone for longer if it weren't for the feeling of judging eyes washing over his body.

Did he dare to look back after such a display?

...No. No he did not.

Clearing his throat to cut through the awkwardness, Naruto reached over for a button he'd seen a previous fair attendee use; taking on an air of completely professionalism as if to banish memories of what had transpired seconds ago. Completely ignorant to possibility that someone may have just recorded his actions to post on the Internet later. The name "Bodhum" along with indicators over popular points of interest overlaid upon the existing topography. A quick swipe here and a button press there later and the majority of icons had disappeared sans areas of historical significance, government installations and the like.

The blond hadn't even touched on a fourth of the existing tabs when a rush of unfamiliar memories played within his mind. A clone had just dispelled. But why? Not even ten minutes had passed there was no way it could have run out of chakra even if he was exhausted.

It only took a minor amount of sifting to come across the message that the doppelganger had sacrificed his brief existence to tell him.

"You seem to be taking quiet along time with that map there. What's wrong, having trouble finding your way around?"

_"Well crap..."_ No better words could have summed up the shinobi's thoughts as he turned to take in the sight of man wearing armor similar to the men that he destroyed in his moment of idiocy.

The conversation that the clone had overheard flaring like a siren. "_To all available Guardians be on the lookout for a blond adolescent around mid-teens wearing a long, black coat." _Blue orbs shifted from the soldier over to the black cloak he had on right now. It didn't look like this particular officer recognized him.

"Uuuuuhhh...Y-Yeaaaaah! I have absolutelyyyyy no idea where I'm goingggg."

"Why are you talking like that?" The officer asked while scratching at the metal piece covering his neck.

Nnnnoooo...**[cough]**...No reason..." The blond corrected before he accidentally ended up turning this encounter into a musical.

"O-kay...Well maybe I could help?"

"S-Sure! That! Would be...great!" Naruto punctuated with a finger pointed upward.

"Uh-huh, so where are you headed?" The Guardian blew off the weirdness to just the nerves that people get when speaking to a man of the law.

"Huh? Oh yeah, location...right." His gaze ran over the icons on the map, desperately searching for the key to his salvation. "Do. You know. Where...the~...Bodhum Armed Forces Museum is?

"Ah, so you're those kids. I bet you could recite the make and model of every scope, muzzle and grip of this assault rifle here by heart." The man said while holding up his weapon; unaware that, up to this point, the blond had been ignorant of what an assault rifle was - let alone how any of those things were related.

Naruto just rolled with it. "...Yeah. Yeah of course!"

"Haha, boys and their toys as they say. Anyways if you're trying to get to the museum just head down this street until you reach first street then-" The Guardian turned away from the blond to begin giving directions.

An internal sigh of relief came from the Uzumaki; thankful that the man hadn't pried into his "knowledge" on weaponry. He needed to make himself scarce and fast before anyone else showed up.

Seeing as that the soldier was thoroughly indisposed Naruto began to slink away into the crowd only for his head to run into a pillar of metal.

It was another soldier. His mind instantly wandered over to one of the few lessons in The Academy that'd actually stuck. Particularly, one about the Uchiha Police Force. And the very specific detail about them working in pairs.

"Aren't you the guy that was spotted defacing public property?" And~ apparently this one actually paid attention to his comms.

_"Defacing public property though? Is that what they call beating the snot out of a bunch of soldiers and breaking out of a highly guarded military base out here?"_

Naruto didn't bother finding out and instead throttled it in the opposite direction.

"Hey! Get back here!" He called out as he gave chase, passing his partner along the way.

"-When you reach the restaurant with shiny, red rooster on it you make a left. After that you cut through an alley and-

* * *

Further down the road a smirk cracked Naruto's expression. The wind in his hair, the thrill in his heart-he lived for these moments. The cockiness on his face slowly creased into a genuine smile. It reminded him of his childhood and the times he'd spent with his Oji-san and Iruka-sensei after a good prank.

"Just like old times," He sighed to himself wistfully. "Right, guys!?" He suddenly called out behind him.

"Shut up Brat!" Was the reply he got from the man leading the group of steadily growing armored heads.

"Yup, definitely just like old times!" Naruto laughed out as he sank his torso down forward, giving himself a more streamlined form counterbalanced by the arms dangling behind him. The technique seemed to do the trick as the teen's speed suddenly jumped to even greater heights, causing a few of the pursuing group to peel off so that they could catch their breath.

Those that were left, however, didn't seemed all that impressed and actually began to close the distance steadily. The way the team ran after their prey was almost like a group of cyclist glued to the slipstream of the leader. An idea suddenly formed as he took note of the sight of two burly men hefting a massive crate of fruits across the festival grounds.

Without even a grunt of effort the blond leapt over the package, garnering a look of wonder from the two men. The squads of Guardians, on the other hand, were not allowed the luxury. Those who were paying attention slid under or past the obstruction mechanically. The few unlucky enough to have reflexes a millisecond slower were met with a wall of muscle and plant matter.

Naruto winced as the dull thump of bodies falling over reached his sensitive ears. "Those guys are gonna be feeling that in the morning." He muttered to himself before vaulting over a particularly dense crowd of people. While in the center he gracefully bent back on to his knees, unknowingly sliding under a street performer mid-flip which induced a roar of approval from the surrounding crowd. Naruto being the attention starved boy that he was, took in the praise full swing-bowing to the crowd flamboyantly before adding his own set of ninja induced flips for style.

His antics earned him an even greater response from then the last but a the commanding call of, "Stop right there criminal!," interrupted him sooner than he could inflate his own ego.

Putting his battle hardened mind to use the blond slipped out of the cloak that he had been using to lay low – calling over two kids from the crowd. He promptly gave one end of the cloak to each of the children before advising them to, "Stretch it as much as you can." Once they had done that Naruto, without any momentum, did a forward handspring over the kids in the center and past the crowd, garnering another round of applause that was immediately silenced as a group of Guardians charged through an opening in the wall of bodies. Their eagerness blinded them of the children in the center of the circle, snagging their legs on the still outstretched cloak-turning the once respected squad of officers into a blob of tangled limbs.

"Well that turned out better than I expected," Naruto stated proudly as he wiped of the imaginary dust from his person. Much to his chagrin, his success was short lived as the sight of metal helms came peeling out of the crowd like nightmares from the darkness. "I get the feeling that this is what it's like to fight me." The blond thought to himself with frustration regarding their determination as he bolted off once more.

After that last stunt he could feel the anger emanating from his pursuers in waves. While their numbers were smaller than when the chase began the ones remaining were leagues beyond the rest in terms of skill and were able to navigate through the throngs of people effortlessly while still being able to keep speed with him. It also helped that they were also really, really pissed.

He was about to increase his pace once more but had to readjust himself midway as the sight of a blockade came into view. The whiskered teen cursed under his breath. Using footwork more tailored for a dancer than a warrior Naruto was able to turn on a dime into the alleyway of an adjacent set of buildings. Nevertheless, the display was later revealed to be a total waste as the pathway began came to an abrupt halt. It was a dead end.

Unperturbed by the impasse of metal the knucklehead did what most wouldn't do in this situation and sped up. Utilizing skills that he had gathered from his late sensei Naruto sent chakra to his feet, allowing him to scale the wall without the use of his hands. Imagine his shock when half way up the building's surface the grip on his sandals gave way, causing him to plummet down head first on to the concrete below.

The young ninja wasn't idle for long, shooting up seconds after the impact to let out a string of curses. Pain was good though, "FUCK!" It meant that he wasn't in a genjutsu and he was alive to boot. Speaking of which the sound of boots following him had stopped.

Only for it to be replace by a chorus of **[cick-chuck]**.

With his hands raised behind his head in submission the blond turned around to be greeted by the sight of at least two dozen barrels pointed at his face. "Uh...hey guys, nice weather we're having, huh?" Naruto laughed out nervously, trying with all his might to hide the exhaustion. Given the fact that he had fought a man powerful enough to back up his claims of godhood prior to all of this it was a miracle that he was even standing.

A man in red came storming out of the cluster of yellow, calling themselves out as the leader of the group. He stared long and hard before ripping off his helmet to get a better view of the Uzumaki. Metal encrusted fingers clutched painfully at a handful of orange fabric. Panicked cerulean met furious brown.

"I don't know what you did..." His voice came out heated and raspy."...But after that stunt you just pulled I don't even care anymore!" He emphasized by roughly throwing away Naruto's collar.

"Hey now, I'm sure if we talk it out we can all realize that this is just a big~ misunderstanding." He pleaded, shielding both his hands behind his head; one of them sinking down toward his high collar.

"You just avoided arrest for nearly five miles! On foot I might add! Why the hell should I believe anything you say?"

"Because~...I'm~...super trustworthy! That's it!" The blonde cried out as his fingers dislodged something from its stitching.

"I find that very hard to believe."

"No really it's true! I'll even tell you something really embarrassing just to prove it!" The teen waved both of his open palms out at the mass of officers. They weren't amused.

"My first kiss was with a boy!" The one in red, fed up with his antics gestured two of the initial line to restrain the lunatic.

"Some nameless asshole bumped me into him. Our lips met when I fell on the bastard." The two Guardians didn't even seem to be listening anymore as they slammed him into the outlining wall. One of them pulling out a pair of glowing handcuffs to slap on to the teen's wrist.

"The entire class thought we were GAY!"

"You done?" The leader finally said. A nod came from the blond as his cheeks reddened from getting nowhere with the policemen after spilling one of darkest secrets. "Good. Lock him up in a nice cold cell. I want him to suffer for all the trouble he caused." The two nodded before guiding the teen through the rows of yellow, making sure to prod him with their weapons as much as possible.

"Can I at least say something before going to prison?" Naruto said once he had reached the center of the pack.

"Sure. But I'm kind of supposed to inform you that anything you say can and will be used against you in court." The leader mocked in a relaxed tone as placed a cigarette in his mouth.

"Cheese."

"Cheese?" was all the Guardian managed to say before a slip of paper with the kanji for "flash" dropped out of an orange sleeve. Then there was chaos

* * *

Crouched on a high on a ledge overlooking the alley a blond looked on as fully grown men screamed while clambering over each-other desperate to rid the blinding light from their eyes.

"Well that worked out better than expected..." He stated, handcuffs no longer restraining his movement in any way. With the squadron scrambling to figure what had just happened he had plenty of time to make his escape.

But for that he needs to regain his bearings. And with these "Guardians" combing the streets returning to the map would be suicide.

Naruto's surveyed the Bodhum skyline. His vision gravitated to a set of interconnecting buildings that steadily increased in height as one approached the center of the cluster. From someone with his background, who leapt across cities on a daily basis, the collection of structure might as well have been a flight of intricately giant staircases. The perfect place to get a view of his surroundings.

In a single bound, Naruto sailed across the urban jungle. His feet making contact with concrete again only after the momentum from his previous leap had carried him over several buildings. Down below he could see the forms of soldiers scrambling around the crowded streets; moving as if they were trying to balance searching and not causing a scene at the same time. Considering he was up here and they were down there, he'd say they were fail in both regards.

Before long the blond was already atop the first structure of the twisting structures. Scaling them with the same effort that one would when going over multiple steps at a time. Even without relying on chakra to traverse the walls of the structures he still managed make his way from building to building with ease. His younger self had achieved similar feats while having a sizable portion of a nation's highly trained assassins on his ass. His present, more badass, self should be able to manage at least this much.

Legs kicked off the railing of his current building. His orange clad form shooting across the gap like rocket toward an exposed pipe. Shimmying up the pipe, Naruto then vaulted up to the lip of a ledge. And in one final heave he lifted himself up to the top of the highest tower.

An arm rose to shield the blond's face from the relentless gale force winds as he trudged over to the other side of the rooftop. Once at the edge Naruto eyes swept over the landscape, eager to finally get a sense for where he was.

As the seconds passed eyelids, that had nearly been force shut by the wind, began to steadily rise up the more scenery he began to take in. The emotion across his orbs flashing between awe and terror.

"...What in the world?" At this point he wasn't even sure if that saying even meant anything anymore. From his new vantage point he spotted all the things that he'd failed to notice whilst amongst the streets: barriers of light blocking off restricted areas from the public; a circular structure floating above the waves of the harbor; a massive, robotic entity in the distance seated on throne of machine and magma.

Overwhelmed by his surroundings Naruto's vision shot upwards to escape the madness. Only for his efforts to have been in vain, for instead of a sun there was only a massive structure lined with a halo of light.

Naruto suddenly found his body unable to move as his conscious mind fought to reject the conclusion that his logical developed using the newfound information.

All of it made so much sense now:

The plastic cards they used for currency.

The existence of given names before family names.

The astronomical difference in technology.

It was like a science-fiction novel stepping into the realm of reality.

All of it made so much sense. Yet, at the same time it made so little sense.

Where am I? No matter which way he spun it the answer just kept leading to the exact same place. The problem was that that answer had to be incorrect. It was impossible. And this was coming from someone who grew up where short range teleportation and walking on water was commonplace.

Whilst the shell-shocked teens body refused to move a gentle humming noise could be heard that grew louder and louder. Retching his neck into motion; Naruto came upon the sight of men, vehicles and even machines circling around him. The thing that settled his doubts being the glowing trails of green light that each one of them was using to propel themselves through the air.

"I get the feeling that I'm a lot farther away from home that I originally thought..." At the utterance the troops, unwilling to allow him another opportunity to escape, opened fire.

However, just as the projectiles intersected on their target he burst into a plum of white smoke.

* * *

-Back in the Festival Grounds-

**"I don't believe it ladies and gentle! Despite Team Lightning having three out of its four members incapacitated Team Leader Lightning Farron has managed to single-handedly gain total control of the field; earning her team the right to move on to the Main Event: where only one member of the advancing team will be representing their respective academies." **A holographic display overlooking the town square depicted a pink haired girl standing triumphantly at the center of the arena.

**"After a performance like that the ragtag band from Bodhum would be stupid not to choose Ms. Farron for that position."** Highlights began to play of Lightning subsequently destroying the competition.

"**Haha I couldn't agree more Tom, I couldn't agree more." **

A cold chill ran down the blond teen's spine as he took in the extent of the girls combat prowess. That was the "awesome big sister" that Serah was always talking about. He couldn't refute that she was impressive but he wasn't so sure he was comfortable with that form of "awesome".

Unbeknownst to him - the teen had greater things to worry about than an overprotective sibling as a Guardian tackled him from behind. The man's fellow soldiers coming to assist in restraining the blond.

"Hey, what's the big idea?!"

The Guardian, however, seemed to be deaf to his cries. "Blond hair; blue eye; above average build; roughly fourteen to sixteen years old ;wearing black-" The man raise up the teen's torso to reveal the orange shirt he had under his coat. "-and orange. Perfect match Sir."

"Excellent work soldier. You can expect a nice raise for tracking down the terrorist here."

"You're too kind Sir." The man how had instigated the encounter raised a hand to salute his commanding officer.

"Wait a second here pal, I may have spray painted my name all over some jerk's stall for ripping me off but don't you think terrorist is a bit much?!"

"A likely story. I bet 'spray paint' some type of code for breaking into a government-owned facility."

"I didn't do that! Come on man, you have to believe me!" He bellowed out as the Guardians raised him up to properly bind him.

"Sure it wasn't. I suppose it was just some other guy with your exact description who did it." The officer exclaimed sarcastically. The blond cursing the entire way as the Guardians guided him to their cruiser.

Meanwhile, as this all was taking place a man wearing a scarf and hat-despite the hot Bodhum weather - craned the brim of his hat downward. Tufts of bright yellow peaking out from underneath the edges of the cap.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**FOR ANY NEW READERS, be sure to check the author's notes of the next chapter to be sure that you are reading a chapter that has been revised already. You wouldn't want to get yourself confused by conflicting content. **


	2. Chapter 2: Mixed Up

Chapter 2: Mixed Up

Disclaimer: I own about as much as a poor college student should...*sob*

Beta'd by: TenshinG and Fan-Of-FictionX01

**Author's Notes: This story is currently undergoing extensive revisions. If you are a new reader and notice that there are inconsistencies in the subsequent chapters please refer to the Author's Notes to ensure that you are not reading the outdated version. If you still have a problem with the story be sure to leave it in a review; I read them all and will address your issues to help understand the flaws of my story so that I don't make them again in the future**.

* * *

-Bodhum: Guardian Corps Headquarters-

A man in his late thirties, wearing a formal dress uniform, stared long and hard at the glass before him.

"Sergeant Jenkins?" He called out, addressing the man to his right who had been standing at attention with his chest held high.

"Yes, Lieutenant?"

"What is this?" The Lieutenant asked.

"That would be the man who broke into the PSICOM L'cie Research Facility sir." He replied, his words gesturing to the teen seated at a table on the other side of the glass.

A heavy silence filled the room as the commanding officer continued to stare at the blond struggling to find a way to get rid of an itchy nose without using his hands. Defeat rang off the sound that left the Lieutenant's lips. He could already see the future clusterfuck forming in his mind's eye.

"...God damn it, why are my men such idiots?"

The Sergeant blinked. "Sir?"

* * *

Deep in the forest of Bodhum, a figure wearing a cap and scarf suddenly appeared within the beams of Phoenix's moonlight, making a quick survey of his surroundings. Only when he deemed the coast was clear did the figure allow himself to smooth his stance; heaving the scarf from his face as if had been lit aflame to reveal the whisker marks underneath.

Naruto inhaled sharply. Spending a whole day with that thing on his face had been absolute murder. Sure it looked cool but that quickly became offset by the way it restricted his breathing and trapped the smell of saliva into his nostrils. He held a new sense of respect for his master, Kakashi, for being able to stand wearing a mask every second of every day.

Walking over to a nearby tree, Naruto pushed the thought of his sensei away from his mind as he slumped against its trunk to relax. Lazily, he brought a hand up to his eye. Blue light converged at the center of his palm; spiraling faster and faster before eventually sputtering out of existence. He willed the technique to form once more only to be met with similar results.

What had happened in that alleyway had not been a fluke. Enough time had passed since his arrival to back up that claim. His chakra, the power that symbolized his ability to protect those he cared for, was not working.

Another hand connected with his outstretched one to form a cross shape. Eyes momentarily shut, sensing the energy within him pulling in the direction that the seal commanded.

A sigh of relief echoed throughout the clearing when he bore witness to the familiar plume of smoke erupt at his feet.

"Hey boss, you okay? You aren't looking so hot." The clone voiced in concern for its creator.

The original didn't bother to respond. The answer was rather obvious after all.

His chakra had only been the tip of the iceberg. Everything, from the people to the air itself felt...wrong; unfamiliar. Here things that he'd only ever seen in his imagination were owned by kids across the street; plain and ordinary. It was mind boggling to say the least.

A slight chuckle raised his chest as his attention turned back to the doppelganger (who at this point had grown bored and started making sand castles with the nearby sand). "At least I can still summon Kage Bushin..."

Gears began to clink together, drowning out the calls of the nocturnal fauna.

"That's it!" Naruto cried out as he leapt up in realization. The suddenness of the action startled the clone causing him to destroy the mound of sand and leaves that he had been painstakingly building.

Summoning! That was it! He made a contract with toads. A connection that allowed him to call upon them at will; a case that was true for the opposite party in the agreement as well.

Gleefully, he dispelled his clone to bring his reserves back up to their maximum capacity. The likes of which would have been overkill under most circumstances but with his chakra acting as strangely as it was he wasn't comfortable leaving such an important moment to chance.

Without any further distractions, Naruto bit his thumb. The dripping of the blood melted away into the speeding array of hand signs.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" (Summoning Technique)," a spider web of inky black seals birthed out of Naruto's palm. Plumes of smoke filled the clearing to reveal...

…

…

...Nothing.

Not a single thing had come from the technique that he'd learned in preparation for the Chunin Exams.

The Uzumaki brought his head down to the forest floor just in case he'd spawned something exceptionally small, but try as he might, not even something as meager as a tadpole could be found.

How strange. Even as a Genin he had been able to achieve that much.

Perhaps he just needed to try again using more chakra.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

Again and again and again the young sage tried to bring out his companions. At this point he wasn't even banking on summoning anyone specifically and had instead resorted to just hoping that anyone would answer his call. Even if it was the tiniest of tadpoles then at least he'd be able to tell it to have someone reverse summon him once it got back to Mount Myoboku.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto cried out once again, streams of moisture barreling down his brow. His monumental reserves were beginning to stretch thin as he forced more and more chakra into each subsequent technique.

Thinking back to his childhood, Naruto recalled the first instance where he legitimately used the technique to its full potential. _"Hey, you stupid overgrown fur ball stop lying on your ass and give me a hand already!"_

His own thoughts were the reply to his mental outburst. The fox was proving to be even more of a stingy prick than usual.

"...Kuchiyose no Jutsu – Kuchiyose no...no...no..." whilst in the middle of his incantation Naruto's outstretched palm compressed into a fist. "No!" The likes of which whipped around to strike one of the many trees outlining the clearing; wood and bark flying as the mighty symbol of nature folded underneath Naruto's rage induced might.

"Fucking no!" Strings of curses decorated the blonde's lips. A searing heat filling him as he began to lay waste to his surroundings.

He couldn't summon toads anymore.

During his earlier years as a shinobi, summoning had become one of those things he had learned to count on. That fateful day, so many years ago, he hadn't imaged that the move he'd considered lame at the time would have played such a huge role in his life. With the toads of Mount Myoboku at his side the young Uzumaki had found something more valuable than any flashy jutsu he could have been given: Companions that would fight for him for a life time.

To a boy who had grown up not knowing the meaning of lasting bonds, the contract had become more than just a powerful tool. It had been a gift. A legacy that he could truly be proud of being a part of.

Discovering that he couldn't summon anymore went beyond the despair accompanying his inability to get back home. The greatest gift his Godfather had left him with, the very thing that he had hoped he would be able to pass on to his children in the future had been rendered worthless.

To make matters worse, the toads – comrades that he had grown with for years – had now just been added to the list of people he had lost. And while they weren't dead like the others, the fact that he could not establish contact with them no matter how hard he tried might as well have been the same thing in his eyes.

A boulder several times larger than a human careened through the air at astounding speeds, leaving a path of destruction in its wake. At its source Naruto stood burdened by labored breaths. His brow drenched in sweat. The clothes he'd used to evade Bodhum's Guardian forces caked in dirt and debris.

It was then, after such a tremendous display of strength, that the blonde's legs collapsed under his own weight. Face down in the dirt, one of Naruto's hands scrapped up a handful of leaves in its steely grasp. The fist coming down with little force, and yet the earth gave way under it; leaving a small crater upon the forest floor.

What had he struggled all this time for? Building himself up from nothing, dedicating his life to becoming more than just a dead last. Only for this to happen just when he thought he could make a difference.

"...Why is this happening to me?" Naruto mumbled out, allowing exhaustion to claim him. His heart heavy with grief; blinding him to what he'd just done.

* * *

-Festival Stadium: The Next Day-

The tournament's final contestants stood at attention at the center of the arena. The crowds were howling like animals. A screen came to life over the heads of the students, a figure decorated in an elaborate headdress and gown coming into view. Immediately the mad raving fell like water through the cracks; melting away as if it were never there to begin with.

**"We have gathered here on this day in celebration. Many of you have reveled in the festivities or partaken in the bounty this fine city has to offer. As you should be, for this is a joyous occasion. Nevertheless, do not forget why we are here. The Festival of New Light is not about food or drink: it is about sacrifice. The sacrifice that all men and women make in order for peace to exist within our utopia. But most of all, beyond that, today is about our future; and the future of the young people before you who have earned their position in this festival's tournament. They are here because they have dedicated their lives to the cause, to fight so that others will not have to. This day is for them."**

As the screen went dark the boisterousness of the stadium attendees returned full force.

High up, above the excitement, the very same man who had just delivered the speech drifted back onto his throne.

A portly man leaned over the observation deck, surveying the reaction with a sense of awe. "An absolutely wonderful speech your eminence, you really know how to energize a crowd."

"Quite." The Primarch stated, his cheek resting on an open palm; the talons of his hand drumming away at his staff.

Seeing that the elder was making no effort to progress the conversation the portly man decided to take it upon himself to introduce a new topic of discussion. "Right, I do hope the lodgings I provided were to your liking."

The figurehead of the Sanctum hardly gave a glance toward the Mayor's direction. "Yes, the service was very suitable for someone of the likes of you."

"Yes well, while I'm sure our level of sophistication pales in comparison to anything found in the High Seat of Cocoon, I like to think that Bodhum is a cut above the rest in terms of luxury," His stance reaching a touch taller.

"I can imagine such a popular tourist destination would require such extravagance to function." The Primarch droned out with a sigh; hoping his tone would illustrate his lack of interest in the conversation. Unfortunately, from the way the portly man's eyes began to twinkle in excitement the action appeared to have had the opposite effect.

"But of course!" The man chuckled. "Nowadays it seems like I can't sign away approvals for all the hotels fast enough to match the number of visitors we take in during the holidays. In fact, just this year, we nearly tied with Nautilus in the latest public poll for 'the most highly acclaimed' vacation spot."

"Fascinating."

"Isn't it?" The Mayor was about to go off on another tangent but was interrupted by the sound of automatic doors opening to his right. Yaag Rosch's slender form marching in without any heed to the "important conversation" that had been going on prior to his arrival.

"And why would a _dog_ from PSICOM feel the need to butt their way into a non-Pulse related occasion?" The overweight man asked venomously. The officer merely stood at attention, not bothering to answer the question.

"At ease, I can personally vouch for this man's presence. He and I have very important matters to discuss."

"Well then, I suppose I can allow it just this once."

"Your blessings are most appreciated, that being said, our conversation is very sensitive so if you would-?" The man gestured in the direction of the door.

The Mayor moved as if he were about to protest the order. His words failing him the moment he realized who he was talking to. Saying anything unfavorable now would only serve to hamper the growth of the relationship that he'd been building with the elder this entire time.

"As you wish," he expressed curmudgeonly, strolling over to the door, hesitating for just a moment before bowing to the Primarch and exiting the observation deck. "If you'll excuse me, I shall...take my leave."

"I don't believe that was necessary your eminence." Rosch offered without breaking his stoic disposition. "This is his city after all. He deserves to know what is happening within it."

"Nonsense. Men of his stature are far too invested in clawing their way to the top of the political hierarchy to muster any care for issues such as these. His incessant attempt to win my favor by boasting of his city's achievements would have only served to complicate things." Galenth Dysley insisted while attention shifted over to the door to confirm that he and the PSICOM Officer were truly alone in this conversation.

"Of course, I apologize for speaking out of turn."

"Think nothing of it."

"You are too kind."

"Yes, yes now how goes our little problem?"

"As of right now the suspect is still at large your grace. Currently, our only leads are reports of a disturbance being heard from Bodhum's outlying forest. Local security is heading there to investigate as we speak."

"Excellent." Dysley stated as he hollowly surveyed the randomization process for the up and coming tournament match ups. "I would assume that you were able to procure some footage of the subject."

Rosch did not miss the elder's use of "subject" instead of "suspect" but did not bother to voice his observation. "By Sanctum procedure, to ensure the safety of soldiers and civilians alike, all interaction with potential criminal activity is captured via heads up display."

"Save the pleasantries and just hand me the tape." He said with his ever-present even tone.

"Right away sir," The PSICOM official said while slipping a hand into his pocket to reveal a data-pad with the video already prepped and ready to go.

Without any further ado the Primarch started the clip. His tired eyes were now giving their full attention to the events transpiring on film instead of the stadium below, "Interesting." The video depicted the moment that - a very much trapped blonde - suddenly disappeared before several highly trained Guardians in a flash, "Very interesting."

* * *

-Back in the Forest-

A beam of light struck our protagonist across the face, rousing an unsatisfied groan out of him. His form rolling away and beyond the range of the annoyance of the light's glare.

Naruto would have gone back to sleep right then and there but his shinobi-trained senses would not allow him to do so.

Vibrations reverberated through the earth and into the body of the Uzumaki. A metallic tang stood out amongst the overwhelming scent of wood and moisture, vegetation snapping with little regard for masking the party's presence.

All of these were very clear signs of people traveling through the brush.

Naruto immediately froze. Shielded by the irregularity of nature any normal person would be hard pressed to pin down his location when there was no motion to give away his position. At this point in time bugging out would be far too risky. For all he knew they could very well just be a couple of fair goers who had decided to take a break from the excitement.

"Hoooooolllyyyy crap, get a load of this!"

"Whoa, what happened? Looks like a tornado tore through this place."

"Can't be sure, but I'll bet that whatever caused this is the thing that lead to all those calls we got this morning." Naruto internally cursed. Well there went his hopes of it being some random civilians.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Next pay check says I'm right."

"Yeah, I'll pass on that. I've heard rumors about your record with bets and I don't feel like explaining what happened to this month's rent to my landlord."

The soldier's companion released a deep jovial laugh. A silence overcame the two as they scanned the area.

"Hey," one of them said; the elephant in the room becoming much larger than life.

"What is it?"

"You don't think the guy who broke out of that PSICOM base was the cause of this, do you?"

"What, you think a _kid_ did all this?"

"I know it sounds crazy but hear me out." Naruto could imagine the gestures the man was making to preserve his credibility. "Word is that he didn't just break in like they want us to believe."

"So what'd he do? Steal some 'top secret' files or something. Still doesn't explain why you think a teenager would be responsible for all this."

"You'd think that but a busted concrete wall and two full squads of soldiers in the hospital say otherwise."

A laugh burst through that tapered off just as quickly. "...You're serious."

"Does it look like I'm joking?"

Another silence, PSICOM grunts might not be the toughest guys around but they were still soldiers regardless. To hear that someone – a teenager of all things – had been able to take them out single-handedly...it was frightening to say the least.

"Whoa..." If he and the one responsible for this destruction were one and the same then all the stories he'd heard about what happened the other day were starting to sound a lot more believable.

Unbeknownst to the soldiers, the topic of their conversation had decided that he'd done enough eavesdropping. Using their immersion in their exchange to slip away from his position and into the canopy above.

Naruto moved quickly; though not overly so to ensure that he didn't attract attention from any other patrols that may be scouring the area.

Blue irises darted around in their sockets for anything out of the ordinary. Getting spotted now could spell some real trouble. Had he woken up a tad bit earlier he could have avoided all this nonsense by simply walking past in his disguise. Of all the times to oversleep, on the run from a technologically advanced military in an unfamiliar world was absolutely not one of them.

Now, despite Naruto's eyes being the primary way he was scanning for potential threats, it was actually his ears that ended up saving him that day.

Immediately, the shinobi descended from the canopy and into the undergrowth. Seconds later, an unnatural fluttering noise became audible enough to detect with normal human ears. A floating mechanical orb with a glass eye taking up the canopy space that Naruto had been occupying before.

The blond fought to contain his breath; all the while observing the sphere with a furrowed brow. He may not know what it was but if it was somehow connected to the Guardians in any way then it couldn't be good.

A cone of light came to life within the orb's robotic eye. The radius expanded until it covered a decent amount of the forest in a blue glow then proceeded to sweep the light around three-hundred and sixty degrees. Once the task was complete the machine gave off a satisfied beep, zooming away into the distance.

Naruto briefly watched it fly, releasing the breath that he hadn't even been aware that he'd been holding as he broke line of sight.

However, when he turned around, instead of empty greenery there was a set of piercing blue spotlights staring back at him. Their origin being the top of some kind of quadrupedal beast sheathed in metal.

The Genin's own orbs blinked back in confusion. He wasn't sure what to make of it. How could something be both organic and inorganic at the same time? It was truly a contradiction. Similar to that square candy that he'd tried while on the festival grounds that was solid yet also juicy like a liquid.

This philosophical conundrum, however, would have to wait as the beast appeared to be rearing back in preparation for a roar. Thinking back to the collection of times that he encountered Cocoon's strange technological marvels; Naruto decided that letting it do whatever it was going to do was probably not the best idea.

Chanting a quick prayer in apology to the animal, Naruto proceeded to forcibly shut the creature's jaws before they could let loose the call then promptly snapped its neck.

Giving the monster a quick once over; with its purple coloring and shimmering lights that flickered off of it Naruto was surprised that it managed to sneak up on anything – let alone a highly trained assassin. Though, he supposed its organic nature helped in some regards. He had been on alert for anything human in disposition. An animal, be it a weird cybernetic animal, did not fit that criteria.

But even with the strange creature dead he wasn't out of the woods just yet.

The lights decorating the creature's body began to flash a menacing red. A chorus of howls suddenly broke the serenity of the forest.

"This is bad," Naruto stated to himself nervously. Not only were there more robotic animals heading his way but he could already detect a pair of bodies coming from the direction that he had fled with several more keying into his location.

Legs flew into action, carrying him through the forest at high speeds. At this point he was less concerned about subtlety and more focused on putting as much ground between him and the body as he could. If he could get deeper inland then he might just get far enough away that they'll give up their search.

Something was wrong though. The further he went the spacing between the trees began growing more and more, salty air steadily overtaking the smell of earth and vegetation and a bright light shining ahead of him forebodingly.

"This is worse," summed up what had been happening all too well.

Back in Konohagakure, outside of the routes that he used every day, Naruto would often find himself lost while navigating his way along the village's many dirt paths. And if that happened to him back home it was only natural that such a thing would occur in a place that he knew close to nothing about.

Instead of heading away from Bodhum like he had planned he had in fact done the complete opposite.

Ducking into cover, Naruto was able to make out the forms of even more officers loitering around the edge of the forest. Instinctively, Naruto's hands flashed into the sequence for a Henge (Transformation), a reflex that would have normally served well during a covert operation. That being said, with his energy being as unstable as it currently was such a thing would only be a liability.

"What was that?" One of the Guardians called as he spotted a plume of smoke burst from behind a tree. The entire group was instantly on high alert, closing in on the plant.

"Damn it!" Was the phrase that answered the man's question, a streak of orange and yellow shooting past towards the direction of the structure floating in the harbor.

The troops stood there in confusion before the correlation between the colors they had just seen and who they were on the lookout for clicked.

"...Uh~ was that-?"

"I think it was."

"Don't just stand there you idiots! He's heading straight for the stadium! After him!" The commanding officer finally ordered, the soldiers scrambling to fall in line behind their target.

* * *

-Back at Guardian Corps Headquarters-

Snow yawned in his seat. Judging by the clock on the wall he'd been strapped to this chair for at least four hours. His bladder had been full for about three hours and fifty-nine minutes of that. The bothersome itch on his face had surfaced five minutes after. His surroundings were pristine yet somehow stank like a concoction of dirt, piss and BO. Needless to say he was miserable. And also bored; really, really bored.

The singular entrance to the room opened up to reveal a middle aged gentleman being flanked by a man several years his junior. Sensing his discomfort, the older of the two new arrivals flicked his head in the teen's direction. The other man gave a look at his superior as if to ask whether or not he was serious. A simple nod was his response. Not one to disobey orders, the lower ranking of the two began removing the hand cuffs strapping the blond to his chair.

No sooner than the metal left his wrist the hand connected to the limb shot up to soothe it's owner's irritated face.

"Snow Villiers: age fifteen, no family, currently working as a delivery man. All of that sound about right son?" The Lieutenant read off from the tablet in his hands.

"Everything except for the part about no family I guess. My buddies Yuj, Gadot, and Maqui are pretty much family." Snow answered.

"I see. Do you know why you're here?"

The teen gave a thoughtful look. "Not really. I was just hanging out and enjoying the festival when some goons decided I wasn't allowed to do that and jumped me." By the way his jaw locked up, the Sergeant didn't seem to appreciate that sentiment.

"Really? It says here that there is a request out for your arrest." The elder informed.

Snow shot up in his seat. "No way that's true! I don't care what you guys say! I didn't do anything!"

Unperturbed by the blonde's outburst, the man continued to speak. "The system doesn't lie. Someone wants you behind bars."

"This is stupid!" In his anger, Snow slammed a fist into the table.

"Calm yourself. Now what Sergeant Jenkins here seems to have forgotten while carrying out the request is to check who filed it. The likes of which just so happens to be a man with a history of calling for the arrest of those who don't deserve it."

"Damn right I didn't deserve it. The guy can't even take a little joke."

He allowed a laugh to slip through. "Yes, well I'm sure anyone would feel peeved if their property was covered in spray paint." The older man emphasized, shooting a glare at his subordinate. Who was just beginning to understand why his commander had been so comfortable allowing a fugitive to go about unbound.

"The asshole is just lucky I was kind enough to use washable paint. With how badly he treated me I could have done much worse." Snow boasted, his arms crossed over his chest proudly.

"Considering how many phony requests we get from the guy, I'd actually encourage it." The Guardian Lieutenant met Snow's grin with one of his own. "Hey kid, just between you and me, how did you do it?"

"Ha, it was easy. Just wait around until lunch. The jerk always leaves his stall unguarded for thirty minutes at the same time every day. Leaves plenty of time to mess around with his stuff for a bit."

"And when is that?"

"Around twelve in the afternoon." Off to the side Jenkins began to sweat buckets. He was a perfectionist at heart. Every order he got was memorized to the letter. Meaning he remembered the time that PSICOM had reported their base coming under attack.

The Lieutenant shot a glare his way. 1200 hours...that was when the announcement had been patched through to their division.

"Well we can't really hold anybody over a harmless prank so you're free to go kid."

"Really?" The blond said in disbelief. It was rather rare for him to get away with these kinds of things (even minor ones) unpunished.

"Absolutely, it was our fault in the first place for going through with an arrest without doing the necessary research first." He offered his hand for a shake, Snow willingly returned the gesture. "The door's open. I apologize again for the inconvenience."

"No harm done." Snow reassured with a grin. "You know, its real nice meeting a member of the Sanctum who isn't a straight up jerk." The underlying venom in his voice spraying at the Guardian in the room who still had yet to contribute to the conversation.

"Haha, glad that you don't think of me as one kid." The Guardian Lieutenant replied with a smile of his own.

"Wouldn't imagine it old man." Snow said boisterously. "Now if you'll excuse me...I~ really have to use the bathroom."

Automatic doors sealed behind the teen's back, its locks choking the room in an uneasy silence. Neither of the remaining occupants dared to speak until they were sure that the blond was out of ear shot.

…

…

…

"...Oops." Jenkins finally decided to break the stillness.

"Oops?" The Lieutenant repeated while rising out of his seat to cross his underling's field of view.

"..."

"Oops?" Heat swelling into the commander's breath, as he continued to pace the room. "You just arrested an innocent boy and all you have to say for yourself is oops!"

The Sergeant raised his hand as if he were in class. "In my defense Lieutenant Palmer, the boy did match the description that PSICOM provided us with."

Palmer pinched his brow. The man was obviously referring to the target description of blond hair and dressed in orange. Those things were only meant to narrow down the population not warrant an "arrest on sight" notice for all who fit the criteria. "You're a Guardian. This is unbelievable. People actually pay taxes for morons like you to protect them."

"Uh...sir." He uttered meekly. "What do we do now?" Regardless of how badly he screwed up, the reality of the situation was that a potential terrorist was free and among the public.

"Nothing." Palmer sighed out.

"Nothing, sir?"

"That's right, nothing. We can't allow word to get out. Proceed with business as usual."

"But sir you know what he's capable of. We can't allow someone that dangerous to roam Bodhum's streets."

"And what do you expect us to do about it?" The Lieutenant inquired. Jenkins, despite his insistence, found himself at a loss for words.

"We are Guardians. Our job is to protect, not hunt down terrorists." Lieutenant Palmer preached as he cupped the insignia on his chest. "If we, of all people, begin mobilizing for battle all we'll do is spread panic."

"You're just going to let him go?"

"No, I'm just making sure that we put our duties first. From what was reported he doesn't seem intent on hurting anyone. If we're lucky he won't do anything drastic while the festival is underway and the public will write him off as just another no-good thief."

Just then the doors to the holding chamber opened up. A recruit in brand, spanking new armor rushed in; flashing his superiors their much deserved respect. "Sir! We've just received word that Delta Squadron has made contact with the perpetrator and is currently in pursuit toward the harbor, sir!"

"The harbor?" Sergeant Jenkins echoed. "You're saying that he's heading to the stadium?!"

"Sir! That would be correct, sir!"

The leader of the group remained deadpan. Choosing instead to reach into his coat to procure a flask and, without any fanfare, begin downing its contents.

* * *

-Festival Stadium-

Serah watched the match with laser focus; her soft aquatic orbs wide to ensure that they could pick up every little detail, her heart fluttering in her chest with every passing second.

Back when Lightning had first been announced as one of the select few who would represent Bodhum she had thought she been as ecstatic as she could be. At that point, Serah couldn't have cared less about whether or not her sister won or lost. To her, just qualifying for that opportunity was more than enough.

But now, with the Festival of New Light Tournament already well within its second bracket of matches and Lightning's current score dwarfing her opponent's by a landslide Serah could hardly imagine why she had ever doubted her sister in the first place.

If...correction when Lightning wins this match it would mark the first time in years that a student from Bodhum had made it this far into the Grand Finals. To think that the meek older sister from her childhood was the same person dancing around her adversary with ease, the comparison was like night and day.

Words couldn't possibly quantify just how proud she felt in this moment.

"AHHHH!"

Out of the blue a woman's cry nearly took her out of the immersion of the fight. Normally these sorts of noises weren't uncommon in this kind of environment; hell she'd be more surprised if in such a momentous event it was the opposite. What made this one so out of place was the nature of the scream itself; panicked and fearful, as if she were under attack.

Regardless of the nameless woman's reasoning for sounding such a way, Serah had deemed witnessing the fruits of her older sister's labor far too important to split her attention. A good idea too, since if she had turned away for even a second she would have missed the opponent her sister was fighting, slipping in a kick that paused Lightning's assault just long enough to put some distance between her and the Bodhum first year.

Seeing that the rosette was a demon up close, the girl booked it in the opposite direction. Her goal being the collection of raised platforms meant to simulate buildings.

Not keen on allowing her fellow student to set up a sniper position, Lightning pursued her. Serah almost yelled out a warning when she noticed the round object that the opposing contender dropped on the way to the tower. Thankfully, she didn't have to as Lightning spotted the trap, twisting away from the dummy mine just in time to avoid the explosion.

The rosette had only wavered for a split second but that was all her opponent needed to hunker down. Hoping to make up for her blunder with pure speed she rushed across no-man's land only to-

"FUCKING HELL!"

–Fucking hell...wait, no, that's not right. Lightning was met with a barrage of fire. Serah cursed under her breath as she saw the screen floating above the battle showing Lightning's "health" drain away. The first year was forced to double back behind a pillar lest she risk throwing away her lead.

**"It appears that after taking some significant damage, Janine from Palumpolum has finally managed to turn the tables on Lightning."**

**"This could be really bad for our rising star, Tom. How will she get herself out of this mess?"**

Serah frowned at the commentary. They were acting like her sister would have a hard time figuring something out. "Show them what you're made of sis."

Lightning peeked out of cover to get a visual on her opponent. She spotted more mines scattered around the tower; counting at least five of them before she was forced to break sight due to a hail of lead heading her way.

Realizing that she had to adapt her strategy, Lightning reached into the battle suit given to them to keep track of the proxy damage, pulling out a –

"JESUS CHRIST!" Serah blinked in confusion. Who even was that and why would someone scream it out with the same connotation as a swear?

–Small metallic device. A manadrive to be exact: an instrument that used AMP (Antimatter Manipulation Principle) technology to grant the wielder a limited form of the power more commonly associated with L'cie. Lightning charged the pseudo-magic - arching a ball of light in the general direction that she assumed her target would be.

The sound of an explosion followed soon after. Much closer than she had anticipated.

**"What is this? I don't believe it folks but it appears Janine actually managed to shoot Lightning's magic out of the sky."**

**"Truly an excellent display of marksmanship. You can tell she's been putting in a lot of practice to pull that off."**

While Lightning hadn't expected her shot in the dark to pay off, hearing that it had been shot out of the sky was a real surprise. Her fellow student was a good shot. With that level of skill there was no way Lightning could bypass her mines and weave around her bullets at the same time.

She'd have to get creative for this one.

Lightning let loose another bolt of magic. This time paying attention to one of the two giant side monitors used to display sides of the arena that certain sections of the stadium might not be able to see. As the commentators claimed Janine took aim and fired, dispersing the ball into a cloud of sparkling dust with pin point accuracy,

Lightning once more tossed her AMP powered attack at her enemy. Only this time two spells flew out of her cover instead of one.

Lightning began to count the time it took for the sound of gunfire to ring through the arena. One...two. There was a significant delay between the first and second.

Perhaps she could use that.

"ARE YOU CRAZY!?"

"Okay that's enough." Serah growled to herself after she'd been taken out of the action for a fourth time. Now she had to know what was going on. Maybe if she was able to sort it out herself fast enough she could get back to the match without missing anything.

So when she got up to face the source of the distraction she thought she would be met with a drunkard or some rowdy fans that had gotten out of hand. A barrage of bullets heading straight for her was the last thing on that list.

Her blood instantly ran cold. Her legs locked up.

From their speed and the distance from her alone she could tell that there was no way she would be able to get out of their way in time.

An eternity passing within milliseconds, the sound of metal peppering flesh reverberated throughout her eardrums. The air in her throat became heavy and dry. Everything went black.

Oddly enough though, the sickening cold that she'd always heard accompanied death didn't invade her body. Nor did her painfully short life flash before her eyes. There were no angels or higher power beckoning her into the afterlife.

"Hey, you okay?" A gruff voice called to her in concern.

Slowly, the embrace of death faded away as she turned upward to meet the voice. When she opened her eyes she was nearly blinded by her home's sentient sun. Her savior's features masked in a shining halo of light. A goofy, ear splitting grin being the only thing she could accurately identify.

Serah just then realized that she had been asked a question. She briefly made sure that she was alright. After coming up empty in the injury department Serah sheepishly gave a nod of affirmation.

"That's good to hear." A growl rumbled in his throat. She could faintly spot the armor clad forms of Guardians racing toward them. Once they were within hearing range the man roared out. "You idiots!" The pair stopped as if to ask if he was talking to them. "Yes, you! Don't you guys know not to use ranged weapons when innocent people are around! You could have really hurt someone!"

Once the weight of their actions dawned on them the soldiers were quick to stow away their weapons, pulling out their own respective batons as replacements.

Serah wanted to question what was going on but her words weren't fast enough. The man who had just saved her on a whim was already sprinting away from the scene with Guardians in tow.

* * *

Naruto paused mid-dash for just a moment to pry off the collection of barbed projectiles that were jutting out of his chest. The grunt of discomfort following the removal of said projectiles was the only sign that the blond had been in any pain at all.

He couldn't believe the lack of discipline Cocoon's armed forces possessed and this was coming from someone who'd made a name for himself as an unpredictable knucklehead. To him it just didn't make any sense. In Konoha, if a shinobi threw out a fireball into the public they'd be court marshaled on the spot. What type of world did these people live in, that law enforcement wasn't consciously aware of basic public safety?

The sound of stomping metal feet forced Naruto to file away the thought for later. However, right as he was about to resume his escape a foreign sensation crashed into his head like a ton of bricks. Blue eyes blinking rapidly to ward off the black encroaching on the far reaches of his vision, it was only through sheer determination alone that the Uzumaki had kick started his legs back into motion.

_"What's going on?"_ Naruto thought as his mind steered itself toward one of the projectiles he had taken for that girl, the droplets of clear liquid dribbling out of their needle-like tips becoming super-imposed in his mind's eye.

_"A tranquilizer dart?"_ That couldn't be right. The fox's chakra healed wounds and filtered out harmful substances from his body. It was one of the first things he'd learned about himself after becoming aware of his jinchuuriki heritage. Hell, the stupid thing even prevented him from getting sick when there was a flu epidemic in the Academy.

Why would that be any different from now?

It was there, at the cusp of thought that another overwhelming wave of relaxation chose to wash over him, the second time around being so bad that he had to physically slap himself to regain his focus.

When the world came back to him he almost wished that he had allowed effects of the dart to take hold. Left, right and forward, there were Guardians closing in on his position.

The blond momentarily thought of engaging one of the groups in combat but swiftly scrapped the idea once the safety of the innocent bystanders around him came into play.

There was only one choice for him left.

Spinning around, the teen came face to face with a sheer drop and the water surrounding the raised platform of the arena. With enough chakra he should be able to clear the entire gap and land on to the other side. It was going to be a stretch though given his previous lack of success. Naruto gave one last look over his shoulder, his pursuers closer than ever before. In this situation it was the only real option he had.

Without any more doubts in his mind Naruto hopped onto the railing, routing as much chakra as he could down into his lower extremities.

However, just as he kicked off his ascent, another feeling of comfort welled within him; this one too intense to shake off. The tranquilizers taking hold of him before he could expel all the energy he'd gathered up for his leap.

* * *

Checking her manadrive, Lightning frowned at the remaining capacity. There were only a handful of charges left at most. If what she had in mind didn't pay off she'd be at a real disadvantage. But it was the only shot she had to turn this all around.

"Nothing ventured..." She muttered to herself as she put everything she had into her next attack. The result was an insane amount of magical bolts clogging the air space of the arena. The first year could feel the shock on her adversary's face as they struggled to take in the amount of spells heading their way.

Once the gunfire began Lightning sprang into action; sprinting out of her cover at great speeds. With her fellow contestant occupied by the magical barrage she would have ample time to navigate the field of mines safely.

The crowd erupted into a tornado of sound. No doubt due to her plan coming together.

**"Is that kid flying across the stadium?!"** One of the announcers cried out, his high octane bravado replaced by plain disbelief.

"Wait, what?" Lightning lapsed in her advance for just a second to see if what the announcer said was true. A curiosity that was satiated by the sight of a blond, missile heading her way at mach speed.

Her mind didn't even have a chance to quantify what was going on before her body reacted for her; rolling out of the way just in time to avoid impact. As the boy landed Lightning watched as he skipped like a stone upon the water across the arena floor, coming to a stop a the very edge in a rather unflattering position; his face glued to floor with his rear pointed high.

Z's began to lift from his prone form steadily. _"Is he sleeping?" _Lightning questioned in astonishment. How the hell does a someone like that literally fall out of the sky?

A question that had to be reserved for another time as a storm of hype pitched whining began hounding at her senses. The first years eyes widened in shock as she was brought back to the present.

She was in a the middle of a mine field. A mine field that the blond idiot had just set off.

Lightning pushed her body to retreat but it was already too late.

**[BOOM!]**

The combined force of the explosion blasting her over the blond and off the edge into the waters below. A look of dread etching across her features as she fell; her "health" evaporating in an instant.

* * *

**Author's Notes: (IMPORTANT READER MESSAGE) This story is currently undergoing revisions. If you do not see a similar message in the author's note of the next chapter then it is an unrevised version and should not be read to avoid inconsistencies.**


	3. Chapter 3: Cruel and Unusual

Chapter 3: Cruel and Unusual

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Beta'd by: TenshinG and Fan-Of-FictionX01

**Author's Notes: This story is undergoing revisions if you do not see a message like this in the next chapter then it is an outdated version. **

* * *

-Days Later: Eden-

It was dark. Very, very dark. The kind of blackness that latches on to the throat; leaving those in its embrace to feel a kind of...primal vulnerability - one that could cause those of a domineering nature to lash out in a rage. For one Hyperactive Knucklehead of a ninja that is what it felt like in the beginning. Now, however, the lack of light was starting to get really boring.

The source of said darkness had nothing to do with the figurative and everything to do with the fact that the police force of the station was filled with a bunch of assholes.

From the moment he'd been taken into custody the metal faced pricks had seen to it that his stay in their facility would be the most uncomfortable stay they could possibly imagine. Especially when they decided to take everything on his person (including his boxers, for extra measure) before forcibly throwing an outfit on him that was just big enough that he could put it on but just small enough that it would ride up whenever he made a move. When the next day swung around the guards in charge of watching him had "forgotten" that the food they were given was meant for him and had decided to help themselves before tossing the near empty tray into his tiny cell. Shortly after that the two had come to the conclusion that the air in front of him would be a prime spot for a smoke break. By pure coincidence every exhale made its way into his breathing slot.

If he had been in the same situation prior to his training with Pa there was no doubt in his mind that he would have ripped through his cell and broken the two in half. As much as it sounded like an awesome idea to do so, it would only make the odds against him in trial even worse. A trial which he desperately needed to go well if he wanted even the smallest chance of getting back home.

So when Prick #1 and Prick #2 pried open his cell for him to be taken to court he let them be as douchey as they wanted. A decision that he was beginning to regret considering how badly they had screwed him over as a final farewell.

Instead of just handcuffing him and moving on with their lives, the two had proceeded to add every form of restraint they could think of; including (but not limited to) a blindfold, a mouth guard, a set of shackles and a straitjacket. By the time the transport team had arrived to pick him up he looked more at home under a Christmas tree than in a courthouse.

When the transport team had asked the officers just said that "He's an S-Class criminal who can use every part of his body as a weapon." Although that was technically true (him being a ninja and all) it hardly justified most of the restrictions they'd placed on him. Seriously, they even made sure to fasten something to his junk! What was that supposed to be for? To prevent him from cock slapping someone to death?

Admittedly, all the attention had been flattering at first. It wasn't every day that you pissed someone off enough that they'd go through the trouble of binding your whole body along with three of your five major senses. Even so, one could only glean so much amusement out of freaking out full grown men with a simple neck twitch after it happened twenty times in a row without fail.

All this boredom gave a guy plenty of time to think. An activity that even he enjoyed doing under extreme conditions. Naturally, the cogs in Naruto's mind shifted toward the visions that he had when he had first come here.

During his hunger induced insanity he hardly noticed them – chalking them up as nothing more than hallucinations of a man on the brink of exhaustion but as time passed Naruto found his thoughts drifting back to the subject again and again; as if these ominous, broken images wanted something from him.

Like a teacher hammering a concept into an oblivious student's head - nagging and attention seeking; doing everything in their power to get the child to focus on what they were being taught. The difference was that teachers actually wanted their students to learn something, on the other hand, his visions seemed content with just stringing him along with clear images only to have them disappear in a haze before he could make any sense of them. Most of what he was able to gather involved flashes of giant machines and a moon like structure in the sky; the rest were scenes of people he didn't know and places he'd never been. The only thing that ever lasted longer than an afterthought was the color pink and the faint scent of roses.

Before the blond could delve any deeper into the subject a flash of light blindsided him, assaulting his pupils to attention.

Once his eyes adjusted to the sudden change Naruto was able to make out the sight of three individuals towering above him like gods in their pillar-like desks.

Heading the right sat a buxom woman adorned with flowing blonde hair, glasses, and a specially designed gray uniform that left nothing to the imagination. Even someone as unfamiliar with the female body as he, Naruto could admit to her appeal. Though the predatory, Chunin Exam proctor-like gaze that was cutting into him kind of detracted from her overall image.

Opposite her sat a man wearing a cape in possession of the same cold, aloof stare that came boxed in with the whole the prodigy package. The stereotype was only enforced by his youthful appearance and the manner with which he held his hands in front of his face, establishing the "cool without effort" look that every single one of the bastards was able to pull off.

At their center sat an elderly man who gave him the creeps. From his outer appearance one would find it very hard to distinguish where those feelings came from. However, if one were to notice the way he looked at people as a whole there would be no need for discussion.

The stare that he gave the Uzumaki was one even more dismissive than the one Pein gave him. While the Rinnegan user considered himself a God, he still saw people for what they were and even pitied them for being such complicated beings. The Elder, on the other hand, didn't even seem capable of that, looking down on the teen as if his existence were no greater than the high grade shackles being removed from his person, as if he didn't even register the difference between a tool and a human being.

"You stand before the Grand Council of the Sanctum; show some respect!" a man in blue and white ornate armor commanded him. When he didn't align with the order the soldier grabbed Naruto's skull, forcefully slamming the teen's head on the desk he was standing in front of with all his might.

...Or at least those were his intentions.

For his actions, the soldier earned himself a blazing glare courtesy of the teen that stood as straight as ever. The extent of the convict's bindings serving to highlight the electricity of those blue eyes; causing the man to nearly jump out of his suit despite being the one with the advantage in this situation.

The blond in question didn't give the man a second glance before turning his attention back to the three lofty figures. "You should really teach your boys to keep their hands to themselves...they might lose them otherwise."

"Is that a threat?" The female of the group voiced for them, her tone being one more along the lines of excitement than of offense.

"Hardly." Naruto laughed out, his characteristic grin smoothing out into an unnerving smile. "Just a warning." The youngest of the trio made a gesture directed toward the Guardian still fastened on to the teen's scalp to stand down, a command which the soldier chose to happily oblige. His armored hand then immediately shot off as if it had been gripping scalding hot coals.

"Before we begin I would like to apologize for any mistreatment at the hands of our personnel," the Elder spoke, "They can get quite...restless when there are guests around."

Naruto's eyes rolled at the man's manner of speaking. Those words didn't hold a single shred of sincerity and were just a means to smooth over any of the real issues at hand. It was a tactic he'd seen the old man use during the meetings he'd been allowed to sit in on.

Politics is such a shady, troublesome business. The only reason he tolerated it was the reality that proficiency with words was just as necessary for a good Kage as their proficiency on the battlefield. Granted, that begrudging respect didn't save it from ending up on the list of things he wasn't looking forward to when he took the hat for himself.

"Yeah, cool. Can we hurry this up?" If his hands weren't still bound he would be looking at his nails in boredom.

A dry chuckle was the response he got back, "Straight to the point I see. Such a forward personality is something to be admired." The man then gave a nod to one of the soldiers lining the hall, who quickly proceeded to rush forward to the Uzumaki's desk before plopping down a glowing rectangle on its surface. "Now if you would please sign on the dotted line?"

Naruto looked at the device with a quizzical stare, "Um...what is this?" The blond asked as the same soldier removed his handcuffs – his confusion teetering more toward what the rectangle was rather than its contents.

"It is a form warranting your citizenship," The Primarch informed as the soldier standing before him forced a black pen shaped stick into his hands. Blue eyes creased warily at the tablet. They wanted him to stay.

"Why?" With how much trouble he'd caused their military he had expected something more along the lines of life in prison or even death; but citizenship? Something wasn't right here.

"It's rather simple really." The woman chimed in, a screen coming to life behind the council demonstrating Naruto throwing himself in the path of a Guardian's stray bullets threatening to harm a clueless bystander. "Those shots were none lethal but you didn't know that. You could have very well taken a hit that could have stopped you cold in your tracks...and yet you leapt to the occasion without a second thought. You obviously don't know the girl so why save her?"

Naruto blinked in confusion. "I dunno, just seemed like the right thing to do I guess."

"The right thing?" She snorted at the statement. "You put your life at risk for that?"

Naruto's whiskered visage scrunched up at the way she had phrased that. It almost sounded as if she were calling him stupid for trying to save someone who had nothing to do with what was going on. It's not like it was her fault for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"To be fair, if this "Sanctum" of yours wasn't so dumb then maybe I wouldn't have had to save a girl from the very people meant to protect her."

"Why you little – "However, before she could retaliate the only one who had remained silent up until now decided to make himself known.

"Regardless of why the event transpired the fact still remains that you, a convicted criminal with the entirety of Bodhum's forces converging on your position, still chose to put yourself in harm's way for a complete stranger. Condemning you for such selflessness hardly seems justified."

The blond took on a look of mock astonishment. "Would you look at that? Some of you guys actually have a brain. I was afraid that none of you could think for yourselves."

A glint of light flashed onto the woman's glasses. It was clear that she had not taken kindly to the "subtle" jabs at her intelligence.

"I guarantee that we can think for ourselves just fine," The councilman stated as his eyes flickered over to the elderly man at the center for just a second, "which is why, after much discussion, we have decided to allow you passage into our illustrious society."

"What's the catch?" Naruto asked.

"There is no catch." Dysley baritoned. "Genuine kindness these days is a rare and valuable trait; that coupled with the skill you displayed whilst evading our troops colors you as an entity we would prefer to have as an ally rather than an enemy. All we ask in exchange for your freedom is to attend the establishment of our choosing."

A thoughtful look crossed Naruto's vulpine features. He didn't believe all that "for the good of the people" crap for a second; people (especially these people) don't do anything without a good reason for it. There was more to their intentions than meets the eye. The only problem was that he couldn't for the life of him figure out what those intentions were. It's not like he'd pulled off any feats of bijuu-enhanced craziness that would make him look more attractive as a weapon, and even if he had Cocoon seemed peaceful enough that they wouldn't need that power in the first place.

What exactly were they after?

"And if I decline?"

"You will be sent to prison of course."

"Of course." Naruto repeated, they wanted him to work for them but if he was going to be difficult they weren't going to let him hang around to become a liability later on.

Naruto flexed his hand to rid himself of the stiffness that had developed in his muscles after being locked in one position for so long. He tossed the idea of making a run for it but quickly perished the thought after taking into consideration how little he knew of his environment. With so little information under his belt running now would do more harm than good and only serve to repeat the events that had led up to his capture. The difference being that they probably wouldn't be so lenient the next time around.

Hesitantly, the blond directed the stylus to the digital documentation lying on the table. Blue eyes ran over the screen, scanning for anything that might put him at a contractual disadvantage. Having found nothing he rose to meet the assumed leader of the trio. "I'm going to be paid for this, right?"

"You will be compensated depending on your level of performance in the institution. Lodging and meals are noninclusive to that payment and will be provided so long as you remain a member."

It wasn't a bad deal. Paid room and board sounded awfully sweet given the fact that he didn't have a penny to his name. Plus, if he wanted to get home any time soon he'd have to be a free man. Becoming a citizen for an alien nation wasn't ideal but it beat being stuck in a hole to rot for the rest of his days.

He'd done plenty of shitty jobs as a Genin, it's not like this one could be any worse.

And with that Naruto signed his life away.

"Excellent, rest assured you will not regret this decision." The Primarch bellowed as he gestured a clawed hand at the blond. "Guards if you would be so kind as to show our guest out so that he may be properly dressed for the occasion?" The men bordering the chamber fell into line with the order, guiding the newly established citizen of Cocoon out of the room to get changed.

Once the key tone of automatic doors filled the court room the youngest of the three spoke up. "Are you sure this is a wise decision your eminence?"

"Raines, up until now I had come to the assumption that you had viewed the appropriate documentation prior to this hearing." The elder stated in his normal gravelly tone.

"You would be correct." The newly identified Raines confirmed.

"Then you should have been able to glean from the security footage included in several of the reports how valuable that boy will be in shaping Cocoon's future."

"With all due respect Sire, that _Man_," the young prodigy refused to believe that a child was capable of what he had witnessed, "is a threat to national security and should be treated as such. It shouldn't even be possible for a person without prior citizenship to exist on Cocoon let alone for that person to be skilled enough to evade The Sanctum's eye for so long. I fail to see the value of putting so many of our people at risk to an outside source that we possess close to no information on."

"While I don't particularly agree with how the General presented his statement, he does bring up a valid point." The woman of the three addressed with a seething professionalism. "Considering how much trouble he caused, I find it hard to believe that this "Uzumaki" fellow will be able to properly integrate into society. Even more so taking into account the division of society that you plan for him to enroll in."

"Both of you make a sound argument but it seems that you have forgotten that my words and those of the Fal'cie are one and the same. Do you mean to suggest that the judgment of our lords is faulty?" The man tested, earning a notable shift in both of their postures.

"N-never your grace." Faster words couldn't have left the woman's mouth while Raines chose to remain silent on the matter. "We are only concerned how we will go about controlling him given the expertise he displayed in the footage we captured."

"Such worries are...trivial at best." The clip of Naruto coming to the aid of the rosette played on loop behind the head of the Sanctum. "His compassion is a strength...but it also is a weakness, a weakness that can be exploited."

A loud crash sounded, ruining the atmosphere that had just been instilled within the room; the sight of a door meeting end over end through the hall. Following the disturbance, a yellow wind sped past the flabbergasted men before leaping a full ten feet in the air, coming to a stop on the desk of the one most holy.

"What the hell are these you wrinkly, old fart?!" Naruto screamed out at the top of his lungs while waving a maroon bundle in front of the man's face.

"They are the essentials you will need for the establishment that you will be staying at from now on. Do you not like them? I hear that those attending are quiet fond of them." He stated, showing not an inkling of concern for his safety.

"No. This. Is. BULLSHIT!" The angry ninja bellowed out. Wide eyes filled the room at the stones the teenager must have to address the man who held the highest position in The Sanctum second only to Eden himself. "You expect me to wear this?!"

"Well yes. If it pleases you, we can get you a different variant of the uniform."

"That's not the issue here you creepy excuse for a mushroom!"

"Mushroom?" The man questioned obviously missing the comparison between his headdress and a fungus. At that last comment the soldiers filling the hall decided now was the time to get the crazed boy away from their leader.

With a great deal of effort, the squadron was barely managing to drag the furious Uzumaki through the hall. "There's no way you can do this to me! This is cruel and unusual punishment! I'll sue you for everything you're worth! You can't make me go! You can't do this! I can't go! I can't go back!"

* * *

"Fuck I'm back!" Was what the new citizen of Cocoon chose to spew out as the squad of guards escorting him marveled at the sight looming over them in Phoenix's afternoon shine. The building towering over the group glowed with an otherworldly elegance that stood it apart from its surroundings. Its design sported a classic theme similar to those of the Romans or Greeks, simple yet beautifully efficient in design - truly a wonder of architectural engineering.

And an eye sore to one Uzumaki Naruto.

There was nothing wrong with the building in particular; it was indeed majestic-if not a tad bit excessive in its presentation. No, it was the words neatly etched out in nice, big letters on a plaque ten feet in front of the structure that were the cause of his ire: _Welcome to The Bodhum Academy of Justice._

He was going to school again. Him! Keeper to the most powerful demonic force of destruction, savior to multiple nations and continents, the Child of Prophecy, the future Hokage! The sheer absurdity of it all was enough to feel like his gut had been sent into a torture chamber.

"Yeah screw this." He didn't make it very far. A lasso of energy clamping on his neck made sure of that before he could reach the campus gates, reeling in the defeated teen like a dog that was about to be neutered.

"Could you please stop doing that? It was cute the first time but now it's getting annoying." The only female of the group's coworkers snorted at the word "cute". She hadn't been there to calm him down the first ten times prior to coming up with the bright idea of calling in the nearest Beast Tamer to strap a bloody behemoth collar to his neck.

Whiskered cheeks puffed out with a dust of pink. "Oh don't be like that." The unarmored woman said as she ruffled his hair with a reassuring smile, her silver locks adding to her beauty in the shine of dusk's orange hue. Why the hell did the one holding him down have to be a girl? "It won't be so bad. Justice is a great school. My little sister goes here and she loves it."

"Fine." Naruto muttered out haughtily as he tried and failed to force down his blush. "I'm not going to like it though". The soldiers surrounding the pair were nearly steaming at how easily the woman was able to get the little terror under control.

Where had she been for the last few hours? If she had been here sooner maybe they wouldn't have spent the whole Fal'cie damned day chasing after the bastard.

Their disdain for the knucklehead stewing, the squad trudged into the school with their captive in tow looking more like an exotic pet being taken for a walk than a newly transferred student.

As the group traveled through the halls Naruto took in his surroundings with wide eyes, his brain subconsciously logging away any points of interest for later. The place was truly incredible. While the streets of Bodhum had been a sight to behold, Justice Academy's interior simply blew it out of the water.

The entire place was wrapped in a royal crimson and gold. Everywhere he looked technology that he couldn't even fathom the purpose of was strewn about the place, further punctuating the distance he was from home.

Before he knew it the sightseeing had come to a close. The soldier leading the pack had knocked on the door of one of the many classrooms decorating the halls. "Excuse me Professor but we have a new student here for you."

The elderly gentleman stationed behind a podium merely raised his glasses as if to get a better look at the party of soldiers. "Ah yes, I just received word that we were getting a new transfer. Though, I wasn't expecting his entourage to be so...well armed."

"We apologize for the intrusion. We'll be sure to be out of your hair right away." The leader gestured over to the Beast Tamer who gave a swift nod in affirmation before releasing the reigns restraining the blond.

Once the lasso had died the armored individuals of the group were quick to file away, eager to put as much distance between them and the source of their headache as possible. The only female of the group lingering for a bit longer to flash a smile in the direction of a girl bearing the same shade of silver as her before she too took her leave.

"Yes, well, I suppose an introduction is in order young man." The professor said with his ancient tone.

"Sure~. My name is Naruto Uzumaki. My likes are training, my friends and ramen. My dislikes are stuck-up pricks and the time it takes for ramen to cook. I don't really want to be here but I hope that I can learn to get along with you all." He said with a bow.

"Hey, isn't that the guy who caused Lightning to get taken out in the tournament?" A random bystander confirmed, setting off a string of whispers to begin erupting throughout the class. From his position Naruto couldn't make out anything that his fellow students were saying exactly but for some reason he had the sinking feeling that they weren't discussing the oddity of him being shepherded in by an escort of Guardians.

"Now class, settle down. I know getting a new student is exciting and all but we still have a lot of material to cover." The hushed tones died down but they did not cease. "Mr. Uzumaki if you would please take the seat between Ms. Chevaliers and Ms. Farron."

"Hi, I'm new here. What's your-" But before the greeting even left his lips the pink haired girl thrust a steely eyed glare deep into the far reaches of his soul.

"Finish that sentence and I will break your legs." She interrupted, malice licking off of her lips like flames. Naruto was so taken aback by the outburst of hostility that he was left gaping; conflicted between whether he should chance the introduction or taking heed of the conviction she had laced within her statement.

Deciding that the latter option was the safer one, Naruto turned to the girl bearing a distinctive ashen pony tail to his left instead. "Is she always like this?"

Her answer came in the form of a simple nod of affirmation.

A smile graced his lips when his other classmate hadn't shunned him so suddenly. "The name's Naruto by the way. I hope we can be friends." The Ninja offered with an open hand.

While she did not accept his handshake she was not so rude to leave out her name. "...Sice."

To most the gesture would have been viewed as out right disrespectful but to someone like him it was anything but.

"Oh that's a cool name! You have a cool name! Do you know what else is cool? Ramen. Have you ever tried ramen before? No one seems to know about ramen. My favorite food is ramen because there are so many different flavors like Miso, Pork, Beef..." He just kept going on and on. The poor girl's lone, uncovered eye widening as the tangent kept stretching longer and longer without end; her world drowning in an ocean of animated hyperbole and hand gestures.

What she hadn't realized upon giving up her name so thoughtlessly was that for most of his life Naruto had been subject to a rather isolated childhood. For whatever reason, be it his tenant or his reputation because of it, people his age often stayed away from him. So when someone his age wasn't openly hostile to him he often couldn't help but kick it into overdrive. A mode that would overwhelm the average person and outright terrify introverts. And Sice just so happened to be unlucky enough to fall into the latter category.

_"God he still hasn't stopped!"_ Where was the teacher in all this? Wasn't he supposed to bring order to these kinds of things.

By now she was beginning to question whether or not the boy was human. Every one needed to breath at some point. So why hadn't he? With the way things were turning out it was starting to look like insanity would get to her first before asphyxiation would get to him.

For the good of her mentality and for the very fate of the world she would have to stop him.

**"Be quiet."** As if the heavens had made the command themselves the entire room went still. Not a single soul was spared; the blond before her, the students whispering in the back, and even the teacher had all been impacted. The silence was unnerving, unnatural; as if the world kneeled to her beck and call. And in a way it did.

"Huh...that's weird." Naruto commented in regards to the lack of noise. Sice's mouth began to imitate a fish out of water as the blonde continued on with his rambling. The hum of the classroom steadily returning, as if the silence hadn't been there in the first place.

"Um...can you please stop talking," Sice asked simply while trying to mask her bewilderment, "I don't want to get in trouble with the teacher."

A look of understanding came over his whiskered face. "Ah sorry about that," he chuckled out, "I kind of forgot where we were." He didn't get an answer back. She was already too swept up in her education.

With the girl out of his proverbial reach Naruto scanned his surroundings to find that everyone else had done the same. Even those who didn't look the part were cued in to the lecture. Every single one of them was driven to succeed.

The Uzumaki had tried to follow their example except every time he tried to listen all he heard from the shriveled excuse for a man was "blah blah blah." With his attention span lost his mind began to wander to the other things about class.

Or more specifically how warm the place was. It was comforting, as if the air wished to smother him in its embrace. Naruto's chin sank down on to the desk, its chilled surface offered a pleasant juxtaposition to the heat in the air. Words of wisdom re-purposed and rebuilt as a soothing lullaby.

* * *

The iconic chime of a bell filled Naruto's dreams.

"Now class before you go keep in mind that all of the first years are due for physical inspection by next Monday. Make sure you take it easy this weekend so that you will be able to come in fresh and ready to go." The ancient teacher announced as the class began to file out.

In the blink of an eye class had come and gone. It was an odd sensation waking up naturally in class. When he was younger he wouldn't be able to get away with a wink of shut-eye without being nailed in the head by an eraser.

Iruka-sensei had been a brutal mentor and a stickler for perfection but most of all he had been someone who cared. The more you goofed off the more he'd willingly sacrifice his time for you. As if he made it his personal mission to ensure that everyone would leave his class with something, even if they themselves didn't want it. And boy did he not want it.

History? Mathematics? What did that stuff have anything to do with being Hokage? Iruka had not shared his sentiment. Almost every day the Chunin had forced him to stay after class for lessons time and again; at times keeping him well into the night if the subject was exceptionally tricky.

Naruto had hated him at first for that but over time the man had been enough of a pain to worm his way into his heart. Holding a special place as one of the first few people to see past the grinning delinquent for what he truly was. Because of that it wasn't long before spending time with Iruka-sensei felt less like being with a teacher and more along the lines of what he imagined being with an older brother would be like.

However, it wasn't long before that sweet memory of his academic career began to turn sour and the side that wished he could forget began to surface. Apparently word in this place gets around fast.

Instead of blocking the hall like one would image, the throngs of first years pulled aside as if he were carrying the plague; creating a defined bubble of space between himself and the masses. The buzz of whispers followed him just out of the average person's ear shot, more concerned with passing on the discrimination rather than the secrecy of it.

His jaw locked up. His gaze sagged downward, away from those dispassionate stares. A burning ache throbbed in his chest – one that was all too familiar.

The feeling of being ignored.

The feeling of being hated.

The feeling of being alienated.

The feeling of his childhood...

Only this time there was no brother to comfort him. This time he was truly alone.

His pace through the crowd steadied to a halt. The rising of his chest fought to steady itself into an even rhythm. A cold sweat gathered at his brow; bringing about an uncomfortable contrast with the rising heat of his skin. Nausea began to take hold, darkening the edges of his vision. The whispers at this point had grown deafening with the undertones of their scorn.

Patiently, Naruto began to list off the names of the hand seals used in his homeland. He took in a deep breath, holding in the air for a handful of seconds before allowing it to leave him.

Blue orbs retreated behind their curtains; an obnoxious smile split his cheeks; and within seconds the color began to return to his complexion – now strutting down the hall like a new man. The transition was like night and day; instantaneous and well-practiced, as if he had done it several times before.

Regardless of the truth behind his expression the fact still remained that the act seemed to be working. Fewer students trailed his every move and some even began to return to the motions of their daily lives. Before long more students keyed into the shift in the atmosphere; the buzz of society refilled the halls once more.

A sigh of relief internally racked the blond. Even so, he did not dare to let his grin drop. The situation had settled down to manageable levels, however, to believe the toxicity had dissipated entirely would be foolish. If anything it only made the cases of open hostility stand out even more.

_"I guess a clean slate is too much to ask for." _Naruto thought, even when he had unknowingly agreed to return to the nightmare called public education he had at least thought that it would have been a tad bit more enjoyable without the scorn of an entire village bearing down on his back. Apparently, Lady Luck hadn't liked that idea and instead chose to proverbially kick him in the balls by putting him on the hit list of every other student day one.

He pulled a slip of paper from the chest pocket of his uniform. According to his schedule the first class had just so happened to be the last of the day, meaning that he had plenty of time to get familiarized with his new surroundings.

**[Grrrraahhhh!]**

But first food.

* * *

-Justice Academy: Cafeteria-

After spending a great deal of time floundering about as he tried to make sense of the maze of a school Naruto had finally found the cafeteria. Looking around, he was unable to bog down any kitchen staff so he settled for simply falling behind the first line of people he saw.

Peaking around the line of students Naruto was having a hard time telling what those up front were getting.

His attention turned forward. After quickly mulling it over the blond decided to take his chances and ask the person in front of him. "Sooooo, uh . . . any suggestions for what to get?"

Silence was his response.

Naruto reached back behind his head awkwardly. Maybe they just hadn't heard him. "I'm kind of new here so I don't really know what's good." He spoke in a slightly louder voice.

Once again not a single word was uttered back to him.

"Is it nice living here? I heard they'd be giving me a dorm. I hope it's not too small."

"..."

"My place back home was kind of tiny so I think I'd be nice to have a big place to myself."

"..."

"Then again they probably give us roommates to live with." Whiskered cheeks scrunched up into a thoughtful expression.

The other student didn't bother to confirm his suspicions.

"Ugh, I've lived on my own my whole life; it's going to be weird living with someone else."

As he pondered the difference between solitary living and cohabitation, the blond hardly noticed his fellow student ordering their food.

Realizing that his new "friend" was no longer there he turned to catch their retreating back. "Oh...um...it was nice talking with you!" He waved with a sunny grin, the likes of which began to deflate once they had broken sight.

He wasn't so dense that he hadn't caught on. While they personally held no animosity toward him they recognized the effect that Naruto's already poor reputation would have on their own. It's not like he could fault the guy for disregarding his existence. It was only natural for someone to avoid something that would give them trouble further down the line.

By the time he got to the front of the line he couldn't even rouse any astonishment for the automated system used to distribute food. Listlessly, he dragged a finger to one of the icons on screen; not even bothering to check what he had chosen. Seconds later, a warm container of food was popped out of one of the many slots of the machine.

Taking his meal, Naruto surveyed the room for any empty seats. He identified a couple but quickly decided against it once he noticed the other bodies surrounding them.

He'd had enough disappointments for one day.

Instead, he decided to make his way outside the cafeteria. There he located a table directly in the line of sunlight. An unfavorable spot to eat for anyone else but perfect for him.

As he ate, he opened that pack that the soldiers had left him with. The bag was mostly empty. The lone object within being a foldable, rectangular electronic device: a "laptop" from what he'd heard. Taking into consideration the way his fellow students had used it in class it was supposed to function as an all-purpose tool for all things school related.

The blond weighed the laptop in his hand as he took a bite of his meal. It was so light, making the feeling of his bag rather redundant in comparison to the satisfying weight of the one he'd used in the past.

The teen snorted at the absurdity of it all; he was actually starting to miss lugging around ten pound's worth of text books everywhere he went.

Though, considering just how different this place was to his home it wasn't hard to see why even the annoyances were beginning to look preferable by comparison. He didn't even like it when menma was used in his ramen instead of naruto; now increase that discomfort by an exponential amount and suddenly it didn't seem like such a backward state of mind.

And yet, somehow, in a world where even something as concrete as education was different - he still managed to end up being hated with no clear reason as to why. Whoever (or whatever) brought him here must have a sick sense of humor stealing him away from his loved ones only to force him to relive his past.

While he delved into the irony of his situation, teenagers of disheveled dress and titanic size for their age circled the Uzumaki like hyenas to a carcass.

"Well look who we have here boys?" The largest of the group voiced as he decided to help himself to some of the blonde's food. "If it isn't the asshole who fucked our school in the tournament."

"Eh? What do ya have to say for yourself fucker?" He asked with a series of raps to the ninja's cheek, crumbs dribbling from his maw.

An unnatural grin sprang once more on the blonde's face, so wide that it forced his eyes into tiny slits. "What are we talking about?" Naruto replied as if he didn't fully understand the situation he was in.

"It doesn't look like he's very smart Bass?" One of the others in the posse suggested, mistaking the boy's strange attitude as a benchmark for intelligence.

The lumbering giant now known as Bass let off a booming laugh, shamelessly showing off the contents of his mouth without care. "You know what? I think you're right. And seeing as how we are the upstanding gentlemen we are it is our responsibility to...inform him of his situation." Effortlessly, the bully hoisted Naruto into the air, bringing his prey up to eye level.

"So here's the deal shithead: you fucked up. Your little stunt during the tournament cost that pink-haired bitch the win and now anyone who gives a damn about anything wants your head on a silver platter."

"Really? Whatever shall I do?" Naruto said with his best impression of a damsel in distress.

"Glad you asked. You see my boys and I," He boasted while gesturing to his pack of equally large students, "have quite a bit of sway in this place. With a little bit of help from us, that reputation of yours can be turned around in no time."

"Really you guys will do that for me?" Naruto asked with feigned ignorance and a roll of the eyes. This guy just loved to hear himself talk.

"Sure we will, however, services like this don't come cheap...no less than, let's say, fifty-no sixty percent of your academic allowance a month will do." Bass sneered as the Uzumaki mulled over the offer in his head, confident that he'd just extorted himself a new source of income.

"That seems fair. Let me just get that first payment for you," Naruto said before unloading a massive loogy straight between the lumbering teen's eyes.

"Ah, you little shit!" He roared in anger; throwing a mighty blow powerful enough to send the blond flying out of his hand.

To the group's amazement the transfer student rose from the strike, shooting a condescending look toward their leader. "That all you got?"

His pride wounded twice now, Bass was eager take this pound of flesh to the grinder. He cracked his knuckles and his crew filed by his side.

* * *

In a courtyard just outside of Justice Academy's cafeteria a girl carrying a cardboard box and dressed in a uniform lacking the telltale maroon of the academy ambled about without a care in the world; a colorful tune passing her lips, bringing life to the soulless expanse.

As she hummed her melody she began to drift off elsewhere, or more specifically back to the tournament.

At first her expression had been filled with joy but as the memory played out it wasn't long before that smile was replaced with a frown.

She mentally chastised herself for clamming up in the heat of the moment. He had saved her and yet she didn't so much as provide him with a thank you when he was the one who went out of his way to help her.

If she had at least thought of asking for his name then she would have been able to properly show her appreciation at a later date. Hell, she'd even asked the Guardians who had shot at her about him but even they didn't know a thing.

All she had to go on was that charmingly ragged blond hair and that dashing smile. Both of which were hardly noteworthy features themselves. She could spend the rest of her life combing Cocoon and never find him.

This was assuming he would be allowed to roam free, though, considering the number of soldiers he had attracted with his presence he was most likely currently being shipped away to some far off prison somewhere isolated from society, never to be seen by her or anyone else ever again.

Suddenly, a stout cry and the thud of flesh hitting flesh reached her ears. She turned a corner to spy a group of bullies closing in on a boy bearing a similar appearance to her savior.

Almost like a girl possessed, she found herself being drawn in toward the struggle. The steady beat within her chest had grown erratic. She was only in middle-school; what could someone like her do in a situation like this?

Her mind rationalized a hundred reasons why she shouldn't get involved; however, her body seemed to have other plans.

* * *

Naruto considered the group of thugs who had come to the assistance of their leader. "Five against one. Doesn't seem fair now, does it?"

"What type of idiot does it the hard way when there's an easy way out?" One of the goons voiced, believing their side to be the ones with the advantage.

Naruto shrugged, his body settling into a combat ready stance. "I never was considered the brightest guy around."

"We'll be sure to fix that for you." Bass said, fist cocking back for a strike.

However, before the strike could connect, the cry of "Headmistress, this way!" followed by the pitter-patter of feet filled the area. Almost immediately, the group of bullies scattered to the winds; none willing to stick around to confirm if the headmistress had truly been there to begin with.

When Naruto turned to meet the new arrivals he was pleasantly surprised to find the girl he had saved a couple of days ago standing within his field of vision.

"Are you okay? I hope they didn't hurt you." She asked with big pleading eyes.

"What, this?" The blond pointed a thumb at the blood leaking from his nostril. "This is nothing." He then took the same thumb to wipe away the blood.

"Are you sure? I think I might have some gauze or something in my bag." She stowed the box she was carrying under her arm to begin fussing with her bag.

"Seriously, I'm fine. Losers like that don't stand a chance against me even on my worst day." He assured.

"Really?" She paused in the middle of struggling to both keep her bag open and dig through it with one hand.

"Really." A soft smile crossed his lips as she allowed herself to settle down. "Thank you for looking out for me though."

Instead of immediately replying the rosette stared at the teen's grinning face. It wasn't until the moment had grown rather awkward and the smile had fallen before she had realized that he had said anything.

"Um...yeah...uh no problem."

Embarrassed that she had been caught staring, the girl decided to shift subject to something else. "My name is Serah by the way. It's nice to meet you." She said presenting a hand to him.

The blond wanted to bring up that this wasn't technically their first meeting but after recalling what Bass had said regarding the events that had spurred on his current reputation decided against it. "Naruto. Just wondering; you wouldn't happen to be a student here, would you?" He offered while returning her gesture.

Serah laughed sheepishly. "No, I go to a middle-school across town by the museum."

"Oh..." And just when he thought he'd found someone to talk to.

"What's wrong?" Serah asked, noticing the drop in his voice.

"It's nothing." He answered curtly, gazing off into an unfamiliar sky.

The younger girl frowned at the response. It obviously wasn't just 'nothing'. Desperately, her mind began to think of anything that might be able to lift the blond's spirits; perking up once she arrived at the box in her grasp.

"These were originally meant to help cheer up my sister but...Please take one!" Serah said as she opened the box suddenly, offering up the contents inside.

"Sweets?"

"They always help my sister feel better when she's in a bad mood so I thought that they might help you feel better as well." Serah explained.

"That's really nice of you but you don't have to do that." He stated with veiled eyes.

"Take one."

"I'm okay. I just ate."

"Take one." She insisted once more forcefully.

"They're for your sister though. I'd feel bad if I- **[gwack]**", was the sound of Serah shoving a doughnut into his gullet.

After a brief moment spent panicking, Naruto managed to get his jaws to break down the sweet fried dough threatening to suffocate him. Air desperately surged into his passage the moment it had cleared up. A look of betrayal shot in the girl's direction.

"Are you trying to kill me?!"

"Feel better?"

Now that the adrenaline had died down, Naruto quickly regained his senses after reaching Death's Door via doughnut; "Actually, now that you mention it, I kind of do."

Serah flashed him a triumphant grin.

"You're a lot pushier than you look, you know that?" Naruto toned in neutrally while rubbing away the crumbs from his mouth.

"Maybe but I'm nothing compared to my sister."

"Somehow I find that very hard to believe." The only response he got back from her was a girlish giggle. Naruto's wall of vexation quickly found itself crumbling under her song. The edges of his mouth cracked a grin that inevitably erupted into laughter of his own song.

* * *

-Bodhum Academy: Unknown Location-

Their bodies were tornadoes of motion, each one set on ending her very existence. A blade of wind rushed past, causing her pinks locks to come alive. Patiently she weathered the storm; blocking, redirecting and dodging with pin point efficiency.

"Not yet."

Stepping into the reach of an out stretched fist she quickly shifted her torso just out of its radius. Sensing a presence off to her right she latched on to the limb within her reach, using it to move the body it was attached to to intercept the blow meant for her.

The shock in her foe's eyes was evident by just how wide the cerulean irises were. That look, however, didn't linger; already her target was reevaluating the situation. Their mind processing multiple contingencies faster than most humans could even perceive a single thought. Unfortunately for them their opponent didn't need to think to react.

"Now!"

Before its fist was removed from its comrade's face she exploded into motion. The same hand that had done the redirecting slipped past the body that had been in its grasp; its palm shooting upward into the target's chin. The force behind the blow was like a shotgun, lifting the body on the receiving end of the strike into the air with ease.

They were only off the ground for a few seconds, a blink of an eye for most amateur rookies but an eternity on the battlefield for the skilled veterans.

As if she were a testament to that very idea the girl rotated her body a full one hundred and eighty degrees away from her striking arm. At the peak of her rotation her opposing arm went ramrod straight, transferring the force gathered from her spin to impale her foe on the following palm strike. The effect of the move was instantaneous as the abdomen punished by her attack folded in around her palm before shooting off in the other direction of the arena.

It was a combination that she managed to pull off in grand total of five seconds.

With one opponent out of the way for now she was able to better focus on the other two that were left. Taking the initiative this time around she rushed at the only one who had yet to engage her, she decided to make the decision for him.

Moments before making contact, the rosette leapt into the air to deliver a kick to the whiskered face that snapped everything above the waist in the direction of her diving strike. Not one to miss an opportunity when she saw one the girl forced the movement derived from her charge to skid to a complete stop behind her adversary. Shifting her arms to the floor to give her a more stable base, she followed up her previous kick with a sweep to the legs that knocked the body they had been keeping up flat on its back.

In order to prevent any chance of recovery she launched herself on top of her downed foe; pinning them beneath smooth, toned legs. Now at her mercy the blond was helpless as a fist sent punch after punch into their face, each one carrying enough power to send the skull rebounding between the knuckles and the floor of the arena. The sound reverberating from the blows didn't stop until the blond ceased to move.

Before she even had a chance to collect herself the girl was forced off the body by the one who had been subject to friendly fire. With a machine like intensity he threw himself at the enemy, his arms firing off like a machine gun. And yet despite his speed none of the blows seemed to be hitting their mark.

Keeping her arms up high near her face and her body low, the pink haired girl easily fended off the hose of attacks. This was easy compared to the triple headed spear that she had to face before. Once a lag large enough between strikes showed itself she made her move. Forcing back the torrent with her own waves, until the opposing swell trickled to a complete stop.

With her attacker dazed by her offensive she hooked on to the back of his head forcing it down to meet her rising knee, an act that she repeated again and again. Once his head snapped back an appropriate amount one final punch crossed his cheek loud enough to reverberate across the entire floor.

The body went limp at contact, flopping on to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

Despite how clear her victory was and how defeated her opponents looked the rosette refused to release her guard. This decision proved to be wise as one by one the three identical blonds began rising from their graves like zombies. Only unlike the monstrosities that they were imitating they shot forward with purpose, intent on boxing in and crushing the one who been responsible for their defeat.

However, just feet before closing in, they all simultaneously flopped over like puppets whose strings had been cut.

In response to this she cast a nasty look at the viewing box overlooking the arena.

**"Sorry Queenie, but I'm going to have to cut you short this time around." **A voice echoed out into the training room.

"I...can still...keep...going." Lightning demanded with a noticeable rasp in her voice.

A sigh sounded out over the intercom, **"I know you can Lightning but you've been going full blast ever since New Light. You're going to burn yourself out at the rate you're going."**

"Start them up again."

"**No. This isn't healthy."**

"...I said...to start the droids up again." Lightning demanded once more, the holographic additions that she had personally made to the training bots' appearance fading as they began to put themselves away for storage.

**"And I say you're going to get some rest."** Was struck back at her, **"As a teacher I can suspend you from using the facility indefinitely if I want to, you know."**

One of Bodhum Academy's star pupils clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Fine." She grumbled out with displeasure so visible that you could almost see it in the air. Turning in early (at least for her standards) compared to being totally banned from training was a no-brainer.

That being said, it didn't stop her from slamming the old fashioned door so hard it nearly fell off its hinges.

* * *

In contrast to this, Naruto was nearly skipping his way down the halls. Needless to say, his mood had greatly improved since he had first arrived at the Academy.

After the "incident" with the doughnut the pair had spent what felt like hours talking about nothing in particular. They shared stories of their favorite foods; the things they liked to do in their spare time; of the people they held dear in their lives, throwing around topics and jokes with an ease of a friendship spanning years.

When was the last time he was able to converse with another person so naturally?

Thinking back, he hadn't even been able to do that in Konoha. Back home, every word was measured (though admittedly not with the best accuracy) with some kind of goal in mind; from trying to get his peers to take him seriously to changing the views of his enemies: every word he spoke carried weight. Surprisingly, those same standards didn't apply when it came to Serah. During their conversations there was no "greater meaning"; they were simply talking for the sake of talking.

It was liberating to say the least.

Running into such a kind person had truly been a godsend. The amount of negativity he had been faced with up to that point was really starting to take its toll.

It wasn't until sometime after that Serah had remembered why she had been there, cutting their interaction short in exchange for seeking out her sister.

Naruto's thoughts came to a stop at one of the many doors lining the halls. He double-checked the number before sliding a key-card into a slot next to the door frame. A satisfying sigh accompanied access to the room.

The sight of an air ship greeted him from a nearby window as if to remind him that this world and the one where his memories lay were not one and the same.

He still needed to find a way to get back. But something gave him the feeling that doing so would be much harder that it sounded. And cross dimensional travel already seemed impossible as it is.

He would need a greater game plan than the one he currently had.

Step one of which just so happened to involve stripping off all of his clothes.

The best ideas always came while in the shower.

* * *

Lightning was virtually stomping her way through the school.

The gall the man had for interrupting her training session. What was the big deal anyways? All she was doing was putting in a few more hours of training a week. It's not like she was hogging up the space for herself.

_"If it wasn't for me those stupid droids would just be gathering dust."_ Very few of her fellow students took the time to condition themselves beyond what was necessary for passing the monthly physical fitness examinations; a trend that she found rather odd considering the competition that came with going to a military school.

As if it were wired to her thoughts, one of the holo-screens decorating the walls came to life. Usually the screen would display mundane things like the various up and coming events; what would be served for lunch the next day; or even popular TV shows for the current generation. This wasn't one of those times. In place of the usual noise sat a chart with various names decorating the list in numerical order.

The results for this semester's rankings were in.

Every couple of months those in the top ten would be reevaluated in rank. It was intended to foster competition but mostly just reminded the elite of how fragile their positions were.

She had only caught a glimpse of the chart's results. Even so it was enough to send the first year storming off in a rage. One single panel had stood out amongst the rest, her panel.

_["Lightning" Farron/ Year: One/ Alias: Queen/Rank: 6]_

Only the top three students were qualified to lead an event team. For those with the right connections rising up in rank was an ordeal, for someone like her without even that it had been deemed impossible. And yet that was exactly what she had done. Through hard work and perseverance alone she had climbed to the top from nothing, paying for each step with blood, sweat and tears. Not a single person alive had the right to deny her that position.

Lightning's fist suddenly shot out into an adjacent pillar. In the blink of an eye she had gone down by three whole ranks, as if everything she'd done in the past year had been for nothing.

It wasn't fair.

She had done her part in all of this. It was her who brought those pretty boys up to snuff during the tournament. It was her who made the plays. It was her who picked up the slack whenever they fell short. It was her that got them in the finals!

Why was she the only one to pay for their loss?!

A splash of yellow appeared on the screens as they shifted to something else more trivial. Immediately blood boiled like lava, knuckles clenched whiter than the bone underneath, muscles tensed so hard they threatened to burst.

That guy, the one who had cost her the win for Bodhum, was going to school here.

When she had noticed that same stupid face she had nearly blown a gasket. How dare he?! He had wasted months of time and effort spent clambering to the top to not only get off scot-free but to actually be awarded entrance into the academy that others only dreamed of getting into.

To make matters worse the inconsiderate bastard didn't even seem to recognize her! In fact, he even had the nerve to try to make nice after the stunt he pulled.

If she ever saw that stupid, whiskered face outside of class it didn't matter if The Sanctum; The Fal'cie; or if God himself were in her way: she would murder him...slowly.

So when the door to her dorm "whooshed" open and the object of her animosity was standing before her with that dumb look on his face clutching one of her towels around his waist she had felt like Christmas had come early.

"Uh~ I can explain." Unfortunately for the blond, her ears had already blocked out all other noise in order to savor the sound of her fist shattering his jaw.

* * *

-In the Dorm-

"Not the face! Not the face!" Naruto's screaming suddenly took a higher pitch as the pretty lady aimed lower. "Okay, the face! The face! Definitely the face!"

What was up with this girl? Granted he'd been on the receiving end of pink haired fury before but this was ridiculous. At least whenever Sakura-chan did it there was usually a reason for it. He hadn't even gotten a good look at her before she had decided that all of his handsomeness didn't deserve to exist anymore.

"What did I even do?!" The ninja lashed out, cradling his swollen cheek. With only a hand towel to cover his modesty (the one around his waist having been lost in the scuffle long ago) and his face starting to discolor from the punishment he looked rather pathetic. A factor that he was hoping would earn him some brownie points toward something other than seeing stars.

When the rosette had paused in her assault relief left his lips.

Though the only thing she appeared to have done in those few seconds was harness her rage to a level worthy of glowing, golden hair and searing emerald irises. His careless cry setting off a new eruption of fury to barrel down on him.

Naruto silently cursed under his breath as his upper half bent out of the way of roundhouse kick threatening to take his head off of his shoulders. He had to think of some way to get her to stop. The back of his hand veered a palm strike away from his jugular. Preferably through a method that didn't resort to using violence.

_"Though it might have to come to that if she doesn't let up,"_ Was the thought that entered Naruto's mind as he was forced to redirect another one of her strikes. He'd fought professionally trained assassins with less skill than this crazy chick.

Thinking quickly the naked one of the pair doubled back behind the couch in an attempt to put some distance between himself and homicidal destruction. The girl in question only seemed to humor his antics for a little while before simply flipping the barrier in between them without even a grunt of effort.

"Well that didn't last for too long." Naruto spoke to himself as he shifted a glance over to the now ruined couch. Not that he was actually expecting that work.

Without any of his tools, he'd have to not only think outside of the box but reinvent it entirely.

So that is exactly what he did.

As the pink haired student's fist came rocketing toward him for another blow Naruto used the only thing he had to intercept the strike, tangling the angry girl's fist in the towel that he'd been using this entire time to cover his junk. Before she could wretch her arm away Naruto bolted behind here to secure her other hand, manipulating the towel in such a way that it transformed the flimsy cloth into a pair of pseudo handcuffs.

Basking in the light of his handiwork Naruto flashed his assailant one of his trademark foxy grins...amongst other things. "Now do you feel like talking?"

"...mh muhha mahh you." She mumbled, her shoulders slumped over in defeat.

"Huh?" Naruto asked with a timid step forward. It was only now that she wasn't trying to outright destroy him that he began to notice the beauty of the girl that hit him like a Shinra Tensei to the mouth. Stunning pink hair, luscious red lips; and that tight, supple body taut with lean muscle, it was a body as alluring as it was dangerous.

"...m'm munna mahl you."

"You're gonna have to speak up." He declared as he leaned closer to her.

"M'm monna mill you." The rosette exhaled once more in between her clamped teeth.

"One more time," Naruto repeated as he leaned even closer. Blood rushed to his cheeks as the heat of her breath tickled the hairs on his neck. From this close he was able to make out the scent of roses and peaches drenched in a layer of moisture and salt. The latter was no doubt from training if her sports bra and running shorts were anything to go by.

He loved a girl who knew how to work up a sweat...

No, Naruto Jr. Now is not the time!

At this distance it would be impossible to miss what she had to say. That's right! His desire to be as close to the sexy girl as humanly possible had nothing to do with it!

"...I'm. Going. To. Kill. YOU!" Oh how nice of her to go through the trouble of enunciating...

_"Wait, what did she just say?"_

Acting at speeds true to her namesake she sunk her canines into the tan flesh of his shoulder. Her legs encircled her victim's waist like a boa constrictor, keeping her secured as the business end did its grizzly job.

The effect of her surprise attack struck like Achilles' heel toppling the blonde's larger form straight onto a love seat. The furniture contained their struggle for only so long before tipping over just as quickly. Try as he might the Genin just couldn't think of a way to get out of his situation without endangering his attacker – Who had really pretty eyes by the way – The likes of which widened like saucers as the sound of automatic doors filled the living space.

"Stupid Lightning, what's the point of having a phone if you never use it?" A familiar voice grumbled under her breath. Whether it was from shock or because her teeth had gotten stuck in his body the girl on top of him (who he was assuming was Lightning) stayed as still as a statue.

This time it was Naruto's turn to freeze in horror as Serah came into the dorm with a frustrated look on her soft features and her phone glued to her face.

The pair of teenagers didn't dare to make a sound, painfully waiting as Serah made her way to the kitchen counter to drop off the box of sweets.

For a second, it almost looked like she would walk away when suddenly her gaze lifted to survey her surroundings. Light aqua orbs meeting to take in the sight of her older sister half naked with her hands bound on top of the even more naked form of the guy she had spoken with earlier and pieces of clothing scattered haphazardly around the living space.

Serah stared blankly at the two for a disturbingly long amount of time, calmingly placing her phone in her pocket. She turned to her sister then proceeded to give a nod in understanding.

All of a sudden, a rush of wind swept up the younger rosette as something along the lines of "Ineedtogotothebathroom!" echoed her disappearance. The door to the room mysteriously opening and closing with the wind.

"Damn, she's really fast." Wheels began turning. "Wait, doesn't this place come with its own bathroom?"

His response was a well-placed knee to the balls.

* * *

**Author's Notes: This story is undergoing revisions if you do not see a message like this in the next chapter then it is an outdated version. **


	4. Chapter 4 : Getting Physical

Chapter 4: Getting Physical

Disclaimer: I am not Japanese therefore I do not only any of the cool anime things that make money.

Beta'd By: TenshinG and Fan-Of-FictionX01

**Author's Notes: The gap between this one revision and the last is inexcusable. This time, though, I actually have a legitimate reason. Shortly after finishing the last one I was putting all my efforts into finishing my cosplay for a convention, unfortunately, shortly after that my laptop broke and it wasn't until about mid-August that I managed to fix it and get back on writing. **

**Also for anyone who is wondering what happened to the previous chapters, I removed them so that it would be easier for people to know when the next revision came out as well as making it less confusing for anyone who was new to the story. **

* * *

-Justice Academy-

The rays of Phoenix had just begun to burn at the arrival of a new day. Crisp morning dew drenched the campus in a film of moisture. Song birds had risen from their slumber to wrap the air with the warmth of their melody. Needless to say, it was still rather early. A vast majority of the student body still drifting away within the world of dreams. But while others continued to slumber away ten students had gathered within a room far from prying eyes; alert and ready to greet the day.

However, to assume that these individuals were nothing more than early birds could not be further from the truth. Like medieval knights they converged before their round table with a deep sense of purpose; noble and just, these lords would stop at nothing for the needs of their people. For they were the ones who had risen above the fold to embrace the shackles of leadership with open arms. The Vanguard tasked with charging forward to meet uncertainty head on. The closest thing that this academy had to perfection...

...All except for one.

"Lightning Farron. How kind of you to join us."

"It's not every day that four of you go out of your way to fetch me in person." Lightning voiced, her seat at the table seemingly more distant when compared to the rest. "Thought I'd humor you all for a change."

"We wouldn't have had to do such a thing if one of us decided to show up to any of our meetings." Another hissed under his breath.

"I might consider it...if they weren't such a colossal waste of my time." Lightning huffed without a speck of remorse.

"Why you-"

"Ms. Farron!" The first to speak announced before the topic could get any more heated. "Do you have any idea why we were so insistent on your attendance today?"

"Not really, no. Though I assume it has something to do with some kind of student regulation nonsense." She answered honestly, arms crossed.

The speaker folded his hands under his chin. "You'd be correct, though I wouldn't call it nonsense. In fact, I'd say that the topic at hand pertains to you the most."

"Me?" Lightning said, her posture straightening.

"Yes, more specifically your qualifications for standing among us."

The rosette's jaw tightened. "What are you talking about? I'm still on the leader-board."

"True." A female member from across the round table decided to make herself known. "Ranking may be the only qualification for maintaining your status as a member of The Vanguard but there is much more to it than that."

The first to speak decided to elaborate on the issue. "The Vanguard are those who stand at the forefront, the ones who lead the advance. As a member you hold a responsibility to set an example for those who follow behind you."

"Haven't I been doing that?" Lightning protested, her volume raising on to the cusp of what would be considered acceptable.

"Have you?" Another female Vanguard questioned.

The member to bring up the Farron's tardiness took the floor. "While you have the grades and the skill there isn't much else to talk about. A nice boost to your student stipend isn't the only thing that comes with the title, you know." The teen brought up a hand, fingers on display for the rest to see as he sharply brought one down in accordance with his next statement. "You don't attend meetings; you haven't contributed to academic policy; your participation in club actives is nonexistent; and you refuse to be anything but cold to your fellow classmates."

"But even so we can't legitimately revoke your status due to the fact that you are still very much an exceptional student regardless."

"So then what's the problem?" Lightning interrupted.

"However, recent events are beginning to bring even that argument into question.

A female member interjected. "During the tournament: you lost-"

"You can't be serious!" Lightning shot up in her seat. "How was I supposed to know someone would literally fall out of the sky?!"

"The real world is filled with uncertainty; you can't expect the events of a mission to play out to the letter. You lost, plain and simple"

"There's a reason we usually don't allow for first years to join The Vanguard, let alone compete in the tournament. They lack experience and are usually still too immature to handle the responsibility that comes with our mantle." One of The Vanguard who had remained silent until now added. "If the faculty hadn't been so vocal in your inclusion within the festival you wouldn't have competed at all."

"If it wasn't for me Bodhum wouldn't have even made it to the finals in the first place." Lightning snarled, shooting a glare at those that had gotten themselves incapacitated and forced her to fight on her own in the semi-finals.

"I rest my case."

"Regardless, we gave you the opportunity to lead our team despite knowing how short your time as a Vanguard has been; we even went so far as to nominate you to represent Bodhum in the finals. We thought you had what it took to bring back a victory. Clearly, we were wrong."

"It wasn't my fault." Lightning insisted.

"Even if it wasn't, there is still the topic of you dropping two whole rankings as a result of your performance."

There was a hard pause in the conversation.

"What are you trying to say?" The Farron asked honestly.

The one to open the meeting took the helm once more. "Your spot amongst the elite has grown uncertain. Should you continue to fall we will not hesitate to strip you of your title along with the benefits that come with it. Realistically speaking, you have two options. Option one: Start fulfilling the duties you have shirking up until this point as a Vanguard. Or option two: Improve your standing within this prestigious academy so much that your position can never be brought to question ever again."

Lightning took a moment to process what he had just said. "Are we done here?" For once her tone was lacking the same conviction that it usually carried.

"Yes, you are dismissed Ms. Farron."

"Thank you." She said rigidly before excusing herself.

* * *

-Elsewhere-

Deep within the walls of greenery surrounding the city a beam of light shined through from the heavens. Its presence announced-

"Fuck!"

-a break in the dense under-

"Crap!" **[...Thud]**

-growth. At its center-

"No! No! No!"** [Splash!]**

-there lay a body of water. Its surface-

"Shit!" **[Snap!]**

-a crystalline-

"Dick!"

-mirror-

**[Crash!]**

…

…

…

"God Damn it!"

Insidetheforesttherewasamotherfuckinglake!

The source of the racket this early in the morning was none other than the Number One Knucklehead himself: Naruto Uzumaki.

And if you didn't catch it yet; he was very, very pissed.

After several days of having absolutely no control over his life Naruto had come to the conclusion that a little training would do him some good. Exercise had always been an activity that he had found relaxing during his early years; developing into a coping mechanism of sorts. A fact that seemed to reign true the first hour he had begun.

All of that changed when he decided to throw chakra into the mix.

Meticulously, he appraised his latest failure in the lake's reflection with the same degree of detail that an artist would a canvas. Once upon a time, his patented Oiroke no Jutsu (Sexy Technique) had been his pride and joy; a technique so amazing that it could fell a man once regarded as a God in a single blow.

But now...

Grotesquely wide, malformed hips replaced what was once a perfect hour glass form; the soft, mischievous features that had once wooed the hearts of men had grown chiseled like the men it had been set upon; perfectly plump breasts that he had so painfully sculpted were now uneven and eye searing.

God, it was even worse than Konohamaru's first attempt! At least with that monstrosity some sicko could still find some pleasure in it; with this...he highly doubted that even the strangest of fetishists would be pleased to gaze upon it.

With a solemn sigh, Naruto deactivated the technique before it could do more damage to his corneas.

What had changed in his chakra to make it this way? Had Pain done something to him at the last minute? Or did it have something to do with Cocoon itself?

Having access to Sage-Mode would have made this so much easier. When in that state his chakra sensing capabilities went through the roof. With it the problem would have been deduced with as much ease as it took to breath.

"Nooooooo, gravity you've betrayed meeeee! **[Crash!][Poof]**" Was the sound of a clone's unfortunate demise after attempting the tree climbing exercise.

...Yeah, maybe trying to become one with nature wasn't the best idea at the moment.

Thinking back, Naruto recalled an exercise he'd been taught in the past; one that didn't require the use of hand seals or advanced shape manipulation to practice.

Wordlessly, he picked a leaf off the ground then proceeded to place it on his forehead...only for it to slide off immediately.

A growl of annoyance bubbling in his throat, Naruto attempted to get the leaf to stick once more only for the process to repeat itself. Naturally, being the stubborn Uzumaki he was, Naruto picked up another and tried again.

...and again.

...and again.

...and again.

* * *

Cloaked in the waves of the lake beady, yellow eyes stalked from afar; invisible to the blond.

Its prey was a strange creature. Unlike all the others of its kind this one seemed perfectly at home under the gloom of darkness. Where any others would tip toe through the growth sporting a cautious eye this one barreled through without a care in the world. Where others would be choked in silence this one was loud and confident.

How foolish.

At the thought of it one of the yellow ones perked up in this one's direction. A trace of a ripple emanating where there was once malice.

This one turned to its fellows with an expecting nod, signaling its kin to get in position. Each of them grouping around the water's edge just out of sight. The two-legged one was mistaken if it thought that it could move in on their territory without facing the consequences. It would pay the price. Pickings have been scarce lately. The pack was hungry.

The predator circled to the left of its prey's line of sight.

The leaf on the two-legged one's forehead remained fastened for just a second. Right as a delighted smile began to form it was replaced with a frown as the leaf gently fluttered off of its body with the morning breeze. With a disgruntled sigh the two-legged one bent down to grab another leaf from the forest floor. Its attention directed downward, now was the perfect time to strike.

Out of a wall of water a monstrous, green amphibious beast leapt at the distracted teen. Its rows of needle-like teeth itching to sink into his flesh. Several more breaks in the water followed close behind, announcing the rest of the pack's eagerness to join the hunt.

As breakfast seemed like only a foot away a wave of primal fear struck the frog monster out of nowhere. Instincts flaring into overdrive, screaming at it to get away from the two legs as fast as possible.

But it was already too late.

A flash of heat and a dismissive swat later and the frog monster was no more; reduced to a shower of red mist.

Cerulean eyes widened in surprise. "What the-, I didn't put that much force into that hit." The frog hadn't just been killed. It had been straight up vaporized!

Being a reality bending warrior trained from childhood may have caused him to, naturally, be stronger than the average person but having a little bit more strength didn't directly correlate into something so extreme right off the bat. Usually, he'd have needed a Kyuubified boost or even Sage-Mode to recreate something similar.

Thinking back, he had recalled waking up to a monumental amount of destruction the night after discovering he couldn't summon toads any more. Perhaps the two instances were connected somehow.

Before Naruto could delve any deeper a wave of malice filled the air. Instinctively he shifted his stance to intercept the sad attempt at tearing out his throat by one of the dumber beasts with his forearm.

Against average prey the needle like teeth would have clamped on to the flesh like a vice, the victim's struggling only serving to tear open the wound even further. But to him the attack seemed rather pathetic. The monster might as well be gumming him to death with the effect it was having on him.

At the flick of his wrist the frog found itself careening toward another of its peers.

Words more befitting a Nara were cursed under Naruto's breath as he took in the sight of the ever growing pack of monsters. The look on his face displaying more annoyance than a sense of danger. He was already irritable from forcing himself awake at such an early hour to train and now these things wanted to screw with him.

"This just isn't my day."

Chakra is the life blood of all shinobi arts from the most forbidden of techniques to the simplest of reinforcement. Having such a powerful tool taken out of one's grasp when they'd been using it their whole life sucked. Add in his strange new physical talents and it almost felt like he was an entirely different person.

A huff of discontent escaped him as the feeling of storming energies raged within his reserves. Getting his body back under control was going to take time. And a stupid amount of it too if his previous attempts were anything to go by.

Luckily for him, there were plenty of nice little punching bags here just itching to help find out why he'd been hitting things so hard lately. Ero-sennin (bless his pervy soul) did always say that he learned better through experience.

It was in that moment that the remaining monsters realized something that their leader hadn't.

An ominously loud crack of the knuckles echoed off of the lake's shore.

They had fucked up.

* * *

-The Streets of Bodhum-

With the light of a new day having only recently shifted away from the twilight of dawn. The city streets were still mostly empty, the cries of seabirds more numerous than the drone of humans going about their busy lives. This setting is where we now find a familiar head of pink ambling along a walkway hanging over the sea.

Lightning's pace was as smooth as the ocean breeze fluttering through her edged locks. Pale skin shimmering in the morning sun with an ethereal glow. Her entire being was a far cry to the tension she had displayed not too long ago. Gone was the even present scowl and in its place there was something else entirely. The expression couldn't be called a happy one. Doing so would imply that she still had the capacity to smile, nonetheless, it wasn't a sad one either. The best word to describe it would be content; a face lacking the intricacies of higher emotion, a trait that would normally take away somehow refining her appearance into an almost statuesque kind of beauty.

Easing to a stop Lightning leaned on the guard rail of the street to gaze out at the coastal scenery. The action was a common sight amongst tourists but seemed rather out of place for someone who had lived alongside the sea her whole life.

Even stranger still was the location that she had chosen to take up her sightseeing. The view itself was rather uninspiring, a plain vista devoid of any of the spectacular nuances that came with most areas people went to lose themselves in thought. There was even a rounded, peanut-shaped building rising up amongst the waves to block anything that might have made the view worthwhile.

She didn't mind though. It set her mind at ease, and that's all that really mattered to her at the moment.

Naruto had just finished his latest training session and was on his way back to the academy when his eyes fell upon something magical.

In the short time Naruto had come to know his new roommate he had only seen her mood shift from blatantly pissed off to a smolderingly standoffish. Admittedly, even with her foul temperament he still found her quite fetching; however, when placed side by side between the striking ferocity of their first official encounter to the soothing beat that rose off of her in the present he'd definitely have to say that he liked her current self-much, much more.

She just looked so at ease, unconcerned with the troubles of life.

_"I shouldn't disturb her."_ Is what he thought. Her first impression of him hadn't been the most stellar of encounters. Approaching her now would only prove to sour this undoubtedly special moment for her.

And yet, despite knowing this, his body continued to move forward – as if it were eager to get a closer look.

A gentle breeze ruffled her form, dancing upon her in a manner unseen outside of a movie. His breath hitched. His eyes refused to blink. To miss even a second of this would have been a sin.

Just then a particularly strong waft of wind caused the rosette to turn away from her view and on to the form of Naruto now less than five feet away from her. Time froze as gentle aqua and brilliant cerulean met amidst that quaint seaside walkway. Naruto Uzumaki: the notorious, loud-mouthed ninja oddly found himself at a loss for words.

Sadly, the air quickly shifted as a familiar frown returned to Lightning's lips. No a single word was uttered as she turned away from the blond, marching off as fast as she could without building up into a sprint.

Taken aback by the suddenness of the action, Naruto was left there standing like an idiot before the impact of what had just occurred made contact. "Hey, wait up!" He shouted while rushing to catch up.

Lightning provided him the courtesy of directing her attention over her shoulder but she was not so merciful as to stop completely.

"Why should I?"

Naruto's step stuttered for a second. "Uhhhh...huh?" That was a good question. What reason did she have to stop? From the looks of it they were heading in the same direction anyways.

Lightning clicked her tongue in annoyance.

"At least slow down for a bit." Naruto whined, his pleas only resulting in her doing the opposite. He ramped up his own speed to match hers.

"Hey!" He called but Lightning continued to remain silent. "What's your problem?!"

The Farron's fangs gnashed with flame, a thousand and one different things could have been said but instead she chose to momentarily douse the fire building on her lips. "You're too slow. The Exams are about to start soon."

"The Exams? What Exams?" Naruto asked while scratching the side of his head quizzically.

"The Physical Fitness Exams." She said curtly, the ember on her tongue already threatening to spark into a roaring blaze with each word she directed at the blond.

"...Oh, Right! Yeah, that!" Naruto boasted, the finger on his skull now pointing toward the sky in a very "eureka!" like fashion.

"You forgot."

"No! I was just...making sure you remembered is all!"

Lightning's eyes rolled within their sockets, her stoicism marred with disgust. This was the guy who had put her standing within the Academy in jeopardy?

* * *

-Academy of Justice: Courtyard-

A boy with tan skin and a stylish, blue undercut paced back and forth with a hasty swing in his step.

"Come on, you got this." He muttered while fiddling with a paper envelope in his hands. "Just do it like you practiced."

To most this fellow would be considered a quote on quote "pretty boy". His dashing features and dazzling smile was like a beacon that, on an average day, would chime the attention of girls far and wide.

But today was not an average day. Instead of being directed at him, the attention of every girl along with every guy in the courtyard was glued toward a single point at its center.

Like a Goddess descended from heaven she shined with an almost supernatural quality. While he was proud of his looks and his skills he couldn't help but feel inadequate when compared to her. Whether it was brains, athletics or beauty she took them all and brought them to new heights. A true inspiration to those below her divinity.

"Alright you can do this. You can do this." He reassured himself once more.

From his placement behind a pillar near the exit of the courtyard he'd be in the prime position to intercept his target before she could vacate the premises.

"Holy crap she's getting really~ close." Judging by the distance between his cover and the tree near her current position she couldn't be more than a few yards away and was closing in fast. His heart did a full somersault in his chest. Now that she was so close he was beginning to really doubt himself.

How would she react?

Would she laugh?

Would she think he was a creep?

"Oh my god what if she thinks I'm ugly?" He cupped his face as his expression was marred in horror.

He wasn't ugly, right?

Just to be safe, maybe he should. . .

Wait no! He couldn't back out now.

So what if she was one of the prettiest girls in school?

...And has the highest grades of her year.

...And holds a spot amongst the top ten students...

_"Aw, why'd I have go and start thinking about that stuff? Now I'm even more nervous than before."_ He let out an exasperated sigh, as his self-esteem went down.

Despite how much he wanted to he knew he couldn't back out now. Not when he was so close. If he missed this opportunity now who was to say when the next one would show itself. Justice was a big school after all. It wasn't rare for students to be unaware of each other all the way to graduation.

Sure the thought of it was scary but the turmoil he'd put himself through from not asking at all would be way worse.

With his resolve solidified he glided out of his hiding spot with the coolest expression he could muster.

"How's it going Rose Princess? Fancy meeting you here." The blue haired student announced with a suave bow. _"Nailed it!"_

"Rose Princess? But I'm a dude. Doesn't someone have to be a girl to be a princess?" A voice clearly not belonging to the object of his desire asked.

Like a machine who hadn't been oiled in years the teen raised himself to gaze at the sight of a shabbily dressed student quantifying the philosophical definition of what qualified as a princess.

From his character defining bright blond hair and weird looking facial markings on his cheeks he immediately identified the one who had stolen the moment he had so painstakingly crafted as none other than the problem child responsible for cheating Bodhum out of their victory in the Festival of New Light. The absolute lowest of the low: Naruto Uzumaki.

"Forget it." He declared haughtily, his mind already working a mile a minute to come up with a way for him to meet with his Goddess again.

"Why should I? Is hiding your love for men such a big deal to you?"

The pretty boy's eyes sprang open with horror. "W-W-What are you talking about? I don't like guys!"

His outburst having the adverse effect of drawing the attention of the passerby students.

"Really? I mean, what other reason would you have for calling a boy Rose Princess?" Naruto pointed out whilst leisurely resting his hands behind his head. A stance sitting on the exact opposite side of the spectrum when compared to his fellow student's shifty eyed expression.

"W-Well, you see..." His voice nearly reaching a whisper out of a mixture of embarrassment for admitting who he fancied and his desire to lower the number of misunderstandings that might be gleaned from the conversation by the other courtyard inhabitants.

"I'm not into dudes myself but if you're into that then that's cool too. I won't judge you for it." Naruto declared with a reassuring smile and a thumbs up.

"No, you see the person that was meant for was..."

Unfortunately, when in public it is often already difficult to hear what another has to say over the roar of day to day life. This is even more so when someone is trying to convey something with a hushed tone of voice. That complemented with Naruto being the chatter box he was caused the shinobi to not only completely miss what the other boy had to say but to talk over him entirely.

"It's alright you don't have to try making up an excuse. Your love for hot, sweaty, muscle-bound men is safe with me." Naruto said in a voice louder than what was usual for normal conversation. "Just some advice though, when hitting on guys you probably shouldn't call them something so feminine unless you know for a fact that they're into that kind of stuff. It would have been better for you to comment on something that would get their attention like their washboard abs, or their chiseled smile, or-

Unable to withstand it any longer, the once cool-natured male grabbed the rambling blond before whisking him away at Mach speeds.

The many devious minded girls who had keyed into the exchange giggling with delight.

* * *

Once they had covered a great enough distance the blue haired boy released his baggage, taking a second to fill his lungs with some much needed oxygen.

"But if you really want to catch someone's interest my master always said that it's usually best to strike up a conversation then bounce off what they have to say until you two discover a mutual interest that will cause the other party to see you in a more desirable light...whatever that means."

"Can...you...please stop?" The boy whined exhaustively. "Like I was trying to say: That whole...thing ...wasn't for you."

"Obviously."

"I don't really like guys. It only looked like I was coming on to you because-," The blond's word just then began to sink in, in anger and annoyance he responded. "Wait, you knew?!"

"Yeah, I figured that act was meant for someone else after reading the name on this." Naruto answered while waving a very familiar envelope sealed with a heart.

In shock the teen frantically searched his person for the letter. "When'd you do that?"

"About when you said," Naruto adjusted into a much more refined stance, " 'Fancy meeting you here'." He even went so far as to punctuate the act with a wink and a finger gun that he proceeded to fire.

"So from the very beginning..." The young man was baffled, he hadn't even seen the Uzumaki move. "Why'd you even say all that stuff if you already knew from the start?"

"Because it was hilarious." Naruto's devilish grin sparkling without a single speck of remorse.

The blue haired teen froze in his tracks, his mouth gaping at the audacity of it all. It was already bad enough that he'd lost his chance with his Goddess but now he had to deal with someone who enjoyed ruining other peoples' reputations for shits and giggles.

"Can I just have that back?" He asked wearing a stance burdened with defeat.

"Nope." Seeing his counterpart's confusion Naruto decided to explain his reasoning. "This letter is addressed to Lightning, right?" The other boy nodded. "You seem like a pretty cool guy. Why would someone like you want to be with a crabby girl like that?"

"Crabby? What are you talking about? Are you telling me you're not drawn to that regal air swirling about her heavenly form?"

"…"

"…"

"Uh..."

One awkward silence later. "...Sorry about that. I get kind of poetic sometimes." Because chicks dig guys who are good with words. "Anyways, you're new here so you wouldn't know but that girl is kind of a big deal."

Seeing that he had peaked the prankster's interest he began to go into greater detail. "Only months after being accepted into the academy, something that's impressive in itself given her background, she single-highhandedly broke every standard in the book. Not only did she climb to the top of her grade she made it into the single digits; got a spot with The Vanguard; and was chosen to perform in the tournament – and all that before the midterm! She's talented beyond belief and is really easy on the eyes to boot; what's not to like about her?"

Naruto rolled his eyes at the boy's fanaticism; clearly he had never talked to her in person to get a read on her personality. "So what, she's some kind of prodigy or something?" He uttered as if he had just swallowed something foul.

"If that's what you want to call her."

"That explains why everyone was so bent out of shape when she lost," Naruto thought. Their reaction reminded him a lot of how Sasuke's fangirls used to act back home only multiplied by a hundred, unisex and with a legitimate reason for their anger.

The memory caused old wounds to reopen. How he hated that word: prodigy. All his life he had had been plagued by that stigma. Any step he took forward, any effort he made to improve was swept under the rug when compared to them. Loved by all for their inherent skill; looked upon as invincible, a concept that could never truly be attained...only yearned for.

"It must be nice to have talent." Naruto said dully, his usual exuberance absent from his tone.

"Um...yeah I guess." The other teen threw out, unsure of how to respond to the unforeseen shift. "Can I have my letter back now?"

"Sure!" The Uzumaki chirped as if his lapse in enthusiasm had never been there to begin with. A new smile creasing cerulean behind thinly shaped crescents.

However, just as the blue haired teen was within arm's reach of the envelope it was quickly drawn away from his grasp.

"What now?" The teen asked rather annoyed.

"Wouldn't it just be easier for me to give this to her for you?" Naruto questioned thoughtfully. "I do live with her after all; I'm going to see her eventually whether I want to or not."

"Huh, you have a point there." The teen brought a hand to scratch his chin in thought.

Just how long would it take for an opportunity like this to present itself again?

It's not like they had any classes together. Hell, the only reason that he knew she'd pass by here today was because of the exam for the first years. Any other time that he might end up running into her would be strictly under professional terms where confronting her with his feelings would be just inappropriate.

As a member of The Vanguard she had responsibilities that she had to maintain in order to remain a member; realistically, the only time she would be one hundred percent free would be when she was in her dorm. Though, if he did that he might as well walk up to her with the word "stalker" written in big bold letters on his face.

"Do it." Swiftly making the decision before he could begin second guessing himself.

And so he bestowed the enemy of every other student in the entirety of Justice with a burden that would shape the rest of his life...

…

...On second thought, maybe this wasn't such a good idea.

Unfortunately for him, there was no going back now – Naruto already slipping the package away into the pocket of his coat. "Alright cool, I won't let you down...uh"

"Right, I still haven't introduced myself." He took a moment to compose himself. "The name's Neptune." The handsome faced boy declared with a bit of flare as he shifted his body in just the right way to get his pearly whites to sparkle in the morning sun.

"Uh huh~" Naruto droned out, unimpressed. "I'll be sure to get it to her."

"Yeah...okay." Neptune's stance deflating at the reaction.

"Catch ya later!" Naruto said, speeding off after his roommate.

"Alright see-," But before he could finish his farewell the blond was already clear out of sight, "wow he's fast."

"Hmm, Naruto huh?" Neptune ran the name over his tongue. That was rather nice of him to offer to do such a thing. He could count on one hand the number of people who'd be willing to go out of their way to help out a total stranger.

Maybe he wasn't so bad as people made him out to be.

* * *

-Academy of Justice: Stadium-

Bodhum's Physical Fitness Exams are comprised of two main stages that vary depending on age and gender. Stage one consists of traditional Physical Education such as running laps, doing push-ups, or lifting weights; with the boys' set of exercises catering toward strength and the girls' being more suited for agility. Following this the students would be randomized into individual mock matches against their seniors; firsts years against second years, second years and third years and third years against volunteering veterans.

At the moment the stands were filled with bodies. Most of which were female students who had just completed the first series of exercises and were using the time occupied by the boys' exams to catch their breath. Aside from the throngs of girls a great deal of neatly dressed individuals were seated directing at the first year students contemplative stares.

Despite the creepy way that many of these people appraised the teens like slices of meat they were treated as nothing more than objects in the background, something so normal that it wasn't even worth paying attention to anymore.

As a military academy Justice has rigorous standards for graduation. Very few of the first year students would actually make it out with a degree in hand. In fact, less than fifteen percent of the soldiers comprising Cocoon's main fighting force even went to military school, let alone graduated. Because of this the students willing to go through the effort are paid to go to school, while those who stand out amongst their peers are paid even more for their exceptional performance. Considering even fewer of those students would make it until the end the ones who do are almost guaranteed to rise in the ranks of the Sanctum: the main governing branch of Cocoon as well as its military.

For business men, politicians and others of that ilk it paid to get the support of noteworthy academies churning out future high ranking military officials.

A practice potentially even more beneficial is to directly sponsor those with promise. That way whenever the sponsor needed a favor down the line they'd have someone in power to give them a hand personally.

However, focusing funding on a single individual doesn't come without its risks. Academy life was an uncertain thing; today's big shot could be tomorrow's dropout. Because of this, handouts tend to be reserved for the top students. An opportunity that allowed them to live so comfortably that they could get away with skipping normally mandatory events such as today's exams entirely.

A luxury that Lightning herself chose to omit after this morning's meeting with her "peers". She would need every advantage she could get if she wished to preserve her status without having to attend anymore pointless meetings.

She had considered simply gritting her teeth and bearing the responsibilities that came with the Vanguard but quickly dismissed the idea. She couldn't afford to waste her time managing fundraisers or planning out events. Every second she spent dealing with them could have been used to move toward the strength she needed.

A sigh released from the Farron as she shooed away another star struck fan from the open seats next to her. The action only resulting in the student joining the others a few seats away. A bubble of teenagers formed, surrounding her with just enough space in between not to garner her ire.

"You look like you're having fun Your Majesty," A mocking voice sounded to her right. The aforementioned "Queen of the First Years" turned to see a familiar smug face grinning down at her.

"What do you want Sice?" Lightning tiredly asked the ashen girl, her exhausted tone having nothing to do with the previous exercises she'd done. She didn't even bother to put in the effort to stop the girl from sitting in a seat next to her own.

It's not like it would have stopped her.

"Oh? Her Highness graces her voice upon this lowly peasant. Today must be a blessed day indeed." The show garnered a roll of the eyes from the alluded royalty.

While the scythe user didn't say much the few times she did tended to be rather brutal, even when she didn't want to be. In a way it was rather refreshing considering how often the rest of the class treated her. At the same time the coarse sounds that Sice's mouth made while partaking in slandering the rosette for her position was just asking for it.

Sice placed a hand over her heart to continue on with the act when the rhythmic beat of footsteps thundered from the uppers stands.

A frigid chill raced down Sice's spin as a menacing figure loomed from above, overcasting her with its shadow. A dark smile illuminated the darkness. Sice moved to scream but it was already too late as limbs, stronger than steel, consumed her in their deadly grip.

Surely, she would be crushed to death soon.

Was what it had felt like as the figure affectionately nuzzled her cheek with his own. The cry of "Si-chan, I missed you!" drowned out the ashen maiden's thoughts. Her form doing an uncanny impression of a lifeless corpse in his grasp. The sunken expression on her face begging someone, anyone to put her out of her misery.

"Naruto...please stop." Sice uttered with a disturbing monotone to her voice.

Once the identity of the assailant had been realized the surrounding students quickly began to vacate the premises.

"Why would I do that?" Naruto asked.

"People are watching."

"Not a good enough reason to let go of my best friend." Naruto answered, earning an exasperated groan from Sice.

Somewhere following his seat placement next to the silver haired maiden Naruto had come under the assumption that they had grown to be fast friends. As such, Naruto found it reasonable to harass her at every turn - blurting out her name in public; offering to eat with her at lunch; and, of course, ambushing her with hugs.

The whole scene caused the line on the Vanguard's face to rise up in amusement by a degree. The display brought the same twisted sense of joy that one would get when watching a video of a cat who'd been forcefully shoved into one of those uncomfortable outfits.

Similar to how cats handle many of their situations, Sice had chosen the path of least resistance. Not outright rejecting his invitation but making a clear effort to clarify how much she wasn't interested in returning his friendship through double phrasing and an overwhelming apathy; a practice that Lightning could attest to using herself. For most, after the first hint the annoyances would retreat with misplaced excuses. Multiple time offenders were dealt with just as easily as long as the number of verbal jabs was increased.

Naruto, naturally, had been oblivious to all of it.

Despite her displeasure,Sice patiently waited for him to finish. It was only a matter of time before he grew tired of this game and decided to finally put her down. To his credit, the blond wasn't this childish all the time. Once he got his fill he would usually go back to his usual annoying self, which – while not a much better – was still preferable to...whatever this was. At least in that state he would only damage her ears with his rambling instead of demolishing her pride as a human being with a sledgehammer of embarrassment.

However, even the most well-mannered felines could only stand so much petting.

As Sice fought to look on the bright side the incessant squeezing caused her body to shake. Each nuzzle brought her eye to a twitch. The breath on her neck causing her brain to fill with an aching heat. Her teeth began to grind; hands balled into fist; nostrils flared.

The cool, image that she had constructed for herself was melting away faster than she could reinforce it.Her form began to squirm in the Uzumaki's embrace.

"I can't take it anymore!" She screamed in a very un-Sice-like manner.

Before she even knew it her balled fist had lashed around to clock the source of her annoyance across the cheek. Once his grip had faltered the silver haired girl leapt upon his shoulders, twisting around his body so that her chest was facing the back of his neck before clamping her legs around his neck with the force of a boa-constrictor.

The surrounding students eyes flashed wide. Never before had they seen the level-headed Sice raise her voice let alone lose her cool enough to assault a fellow classmate.

Watching the life slowly began to drain from Naruto's eyes, Lightning debated whether or not to intervene. He was the reason she felt so inclined to attend an event that she wasn't required to participate in after-all.

But after seeing his cheeks transition from a healthy tan to a sickly blue, Lightning had decided that she had gleaned enough self-retribution from the sight. Serah, for whatever reason, had actually grown to like the boy. She couldn't, with a clear conscience, allow him to die in such a pathetic manner while her sister still cared for him to some extent.

"Sice, I'm about as big of a fan of you 'best friend' as anyone but you can't just kill him."

"Why not?" The Farron actually had to stop for a moment to think about that. Naruto's hand reaching for the sky, his vision bleeding into black.

"Well for one he's about to go up soon and two you'd probably get expelled." Sice held on for a few more seconds, as if to contemplate whether or not it was worth it before finally releasing her captive.

Naruto moved to turn toward the Vanguard as if to thank her but ceased his action midway, instead directing his focus toward his assailant. "Geez...what...was that...for?!" He demanded between gasps.

"Oh I wonder?" Sice's tone dripping with sarcasm.

"Seriously, you could have killed me!" Naruto bellowed. He'd been at this academy for a little over a week and he'd nearly died of asphyxiation twice already.

"That was the point you idiot." Sice huffed, blowing the silver bangs out of her eye while folding her arms across her chest.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that maybe if you had done me favor and just died then maybe your reincarnation would know a thing or two about personal space!"

"What do stars and planets have anything to do with this?!"

"Oh my god, you are so~ stupid." Sice declared while she pinching her temple.

Just as Naruto was about to make a retort the loudspeaker rang. **"Would all first year boys please make your way down to the floor for your assessment."**

"Oh looks I'm up. See ya later Sice." Naruto said, his annoyance dissipating without warning; leaving the ashen maiden to stew in a confused silence.

As he made his way down, bright blue orbs drifted over to the third individual within their mindset before diverting at the hint that his vision had been caught lingering.

Lightning raised an eyebrow at the action. _"What was that about?"_ This morning he was so eager to talk to her. And yet now it was almost like he was trying to work around her during that entire exchange.

The rosette mentally shrugged off the thought. It's not like she particularly liked him to begin with. If he didn't want to interact with her anymore then that was just better for her.

His disappearance garnered a breath of relief out of Sice as she plopped down next to the Farron.

Sooner than Lightning could voice that she hadn't given her permission, a finger rose up to silence the statement.

"Don't even." Sice hissed out, her hostility unknowingly warding off a sponsor who had been impressed by her display of skill. "I am **not** in the mood right now."

Suddenly a serious visage overtook Sice's anger. "How you think Whiskers will do?"

Lightning blinked in surprise at the question as if beckoning where it had come from.

"...I-I don't know." She answered honestly.

After his... introduction nothing to note about him could really be said. With how boisterously he had proclaimed his existence during the tournament she had always assumed he would be somewhat of a troublemaker.

Shockingly, she couldn't have been further from the truth. He attended class on time; did all his work; and even answered any question that the teacher asked of him. If anything, the thing that stuck out about him the most was that he didn't stick out at all. In class he was almost like a ghost with how little he flaunted his presence. At times she even found herself forgetting that he was there at all, and that was saying something considering their less than favorable history.

To her though the mystery of the transfer student delved even deeper than that, for she was one of the unlucky few to have seen him naked.

Even whilst in the blinding rage of their first official meeting she'd seen it. The lean, rippling muscle spring loaded with power; the manner that he danced around one of the Academy's poster children with ease; the unique method with which he had subdued her and the speed he demonstrated whenever he was a little too eager to meet up with his favorite silver haired girl. They didn't match a person with his kind of disposition, however, they were there if you looked hard enough.

"I have the feeling that he might surprise us."

* * *

They had not been sure of what they were expecting but this surely was not it. It was as if he had taken their anticipation and just spit all over it. Like they had gone to see a film that had been hyped to the nth degree only to have left painfully underwhelmed.

That isn't to say he performed poorly; contrary to their feelings he did rather well. The problem was it was just so~, so normal.

There was no supersonic speed, no explosive strength, no inhuman endurance.

Just like in class he met the standard and held on to it. If they asked for sixty push-ups in two minutes he would do them but then stop immediately afterwards. If they wanted a seven-minute run he would reach the finish line right as the six-minute mark turned over to seven. Never doing anything more or anything less.

It was actually somewhat disturbing to watch. During exams like these most students would often display some kind of disparity between the standard asked and what they gave. It was simply natural for some to do better in some exercises than in others, even Lightning performed slightly more poorly than usual from time to time. But to see someone stick the mark exactly for each event...it just wasn't right.

Taking to account that he never seemed out of breath after anything made it almost seem like he was trying to put on such a dull display on purpose.

The call for the second and final portion of the exam came around, signaling the girls to get ready for their matches while the boys took their turn to rest.

As the silver and pink pair descended toward the sparring area they passed by the blond in question making his way up the stands, a Cheshire smile shined on his cheeks. Why he seemed so pleased with such a monotonous performance was beyond them.

While he passed this portion of the exam, there was no way in hell that any of the sponsors would have deemed him worthy enough for their time. He would have to really pull off something amazing during the sparring matches if he wanted to get noticed at all.

* * *

An audible yawn escaped the Uzumaki as he tried to keep up with the last rounds of female students' mock battles.

Like clockwork the two fighters would bow, the older of the two encouraging the younger to give it their all. The senior would then defend for the most part, allowing the first year to demonstrate their skills. At the half way point in the time limit the second year would quickly reestablish their superiority, sealing the deal before the time stopped.

After Lightning, and to a lesser extent Sice, had finished crushing their opponents in the first batch of rounds the remaining fights had become more of a chore to watch if anything. Like watching a movie that had dragged too far past the climax.

Just as Naruto was about to succumb to heavy eye lids a familiar head of blue amongst the second year boys shocked him awake.

With nothing better to do Naruto made his way over.

"Yo, Neptune."

The pretty boy in question cut his current conversation short, much to the other's discontent upon seeing who they were being traded off for.

"Sup." Neptune answered curtly before leaning in with a hand covering his mouth. "You're still willing to do that thing for me right?"

"Yeah, yeah it's no problem."

The blue haired boy's chest lowered in relief. "Okay good."

"Though if you were going to be one of the second years helping out with the exams anyways; why didn't you just wait until now to give it to her?" Naruto asked while shooting a glance at his roommate.

"Wh-wh-what!? Are you crazy?!" Neptune reeled back as if the shinobi had just suggested something outrageous.

"I don't see what the big deal is."

"I don't have my clothes-"

"All of us wear the same thing though."

"There's people here-"

"The amount here isn't that different from earlier."

"I don't smell right-"

"You haven't even gone up yet."

"Look!" Neptune's voice raised without him realizing, attracting the attention of more than a few of the others. Neptune quickly hushed himself so that those who had tuned in wouldn't be able to hear. "Look, it's just different okay." His positioning behind the pillar made that section of the courtyard free from prying eyes. That paired up with the timing, being intentionally close to the start of exams so that she'd be eager to answer quickly, made the location in that moment prime "asking out" territory.

"I still don't get it."

"And you don't have to." The blue haired boy placed a hand on his junior's shoulder. "All you have to do is give her the letter when you have the chance."

"Hey Dolly Boy, what's with the racket!?" An obnoxious voice bellowed out in a manner leagues more disruptive than the pretty boy's previous outburst.

"...It was nothing Bass." Neptune's voice lost its edge as a familiar monkey faced giant of a man made himself comfortable, draping a thick arm on the boy's shoulder in an overly friendly way. Bass, though, hadn't heard Neptune and was instead glaring at the blond who'd been conversing with his new resting post.

"Hey, what's the big idea getting all chummy with Fuck Face here?"

"We were just talking Bass. We're not friends."

"Really? I thought we were getting along just fine." Naruto said, not taking the hint - causing cyan tinted boy's hand to spring up in a face palm.

"Is that so?" Bass punctuated while separating from Neptune; stalking up to Naruto in the most intimidating way that he could, latching on to the blond by the scruff of his shirt. "You do realize what might happen if some unsavory gentlemen catch wind of this, right?"

Neptune didn't miss the implications behind the thug's words. "Nothing will happen since there's nothing to catch wind-ockkkpu" Was the sound of Neptune choking on his own spit. The source of that being that up until now the wannabe teenage Adonis had been trying his hardest not to look at the jackass in the eye. Because of that he had missed a distinctly new feature about Bass' look. Or more specifically the newest alteration to it.

"I love what you've done with your hair." Naruto said with a shit eating grin that spoke volumes about just how "scared" he was by his position.

Bass' knuckles tightened in their fist. "So it was you!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Cerulean eyes mimicked a shape that Naruto had learned from his masked sensei. "Orange is my favorite color though."

That's right everyone, Bass himself was now sporting a lovely new mop of neon orange hair. If Neptune wasn't terrified for his new friend's well-being he would be busting a gut right now.

Bass' snarl was audible with the sound of grinding teeth. "You are so-!"

**"Would first year Naruto Uzumaki and second year Basiano Winchester please report to the floor?"**

"-Dead." A nasty look of delight came upon Basiano. "And it looks like it's going to be a public execution." He added, loosening his grip so that he could make his way over to the arena.

"You did not." Neptune finally questioned once the new ginger had stomped out of earshot. Naruto's satisfied smirk was all he needed as confirmation. "You did!"

"And what about it?" The prankster offered proudly.

"Do you have any idea what you've just done?" The blue haired boy questioned, the urgency in his voice punctuated by the way that he latched on to the blonde's shoulders.

"Something funny."

"Something stupid. Something really, really~ stupid."

"That guy who you just turned into a traffic cone is-"

"An asshole I know."

"Yes, but now really is not the time Naruto." The blond finally decided to take what his new friend had to say seriously after catching the tone that Neptune used for his name.

"Basiano "The Bull" Winchester is not someone you can just joke about whenever you feel like. Not only does he have a legion of goons at his beck and call but he also has strong enough bite to match his bark." Neptune shot a look over at the giant of man posturing his impressive build from the arena. "They say the only reason why he's not a part of the Vanguard is because he isn't well liked enough by everyone else to become a member."

"Wow he sounds tough." Naruto marveled before beginning his walk over to the arena.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Neptune asked hastily, one hand still on the Shinobi's shoulder.

"Going up for my match."

"Aren't you going to forfeit?"

"Why the hell would I do that?" Naruto asked, meeting Neptune's eyes without a trace of fear in them. At that moment Neptune finally understood that somehow, despite the score that he'd gotten in the previous portion of the exam the blond fully believed that he could win. Stopping him right now wouldn't be a favor...it'd be an insult.

**"First year Naruto Uzumaki your opponent is waiting for you."**

"You heard them. I'm up." Naruto pointed out, implying that his companion should let him go now.

"Ah...right." This guy, he really had balls of steel. "Give 'em hell." He tacked on awkwardly, hoping that the blond was more than meets the eye.

Naruto just nodded before making his way up to the steps to join the bully in the arena.

**"Now that both students are accounted for I will explain the rules." **Naruto made a grunt of annoyance, this was already the tenth time that they've heard this. Couldn't they have just made one announcement instead of repeating themselves every time. **"This match relies on a point based system. Points are distributed as long a contact with your opponent is made; however; you get more points if contact is made to areas of greater importance. In short - one point for contact, three points for body blows and finally five points for the head. That being said, any force inappropriate for a spar will result in the offending party's disqualification."**

"Just get on with it!" Basiano hollered out, his impatience more visible than ever.

The announcer wasn't swayed at all by the student's rude comment and continued on. **" A winner is decided if a student reaches the match limit of fifty points, if a student is forced out of the designated zone, or between who has the greater score when the given ten minutes have elapsed."** A large floating screen overlooking the stadium displayed a score counter and the aforementioned time limit accompanying Bass and Naruto's images. **"Are both student's ready?"**

Naruto yawned obnoxiously, "Eeeyup."

"I was ready five minutes ago!"

**"Then the match will begin in 3..."**

Bass raised his fist into a classic boxing stance, a mask of seriousness overtaking his standard demeanor. His opponent, on the other hand, had one hand hooked in the pockets of his sweats, content in remaining in his slack posture. Blue irises half lidded as he gazed out at the audience with a bored expression.

**"2..."**

The Bull didn't exactly know how to approach his target. Bass knew his own skills were nothing to snuff at; the caution that the lower ranks of The Vanguard were forced to incorporate during spars was proof of that. Either the guy wasn't aware of his abilities or he was so cocky that he couldn't be bothered to take up a proper fighting stance.

The giant bared his teeth in a display of aggression. "You're going down Uzumaki." Whatever outlook the fool had of him he'd make sure that he'd regret it.

**"1..."**

Naruto's neck craned in Bass' direction, his attention more focused on the state of his nails than the murderous intent being sent to him in waves.

"I'm sorry...did you say something?" Those words were the straw that broke the camel's back

Blood suddenly began rushing to the giant's face, his breath becoming a boiling haze. A hammer of a fist choked back, coiled ready to fire off into the bastard's cheeky, smug face.

_"First he ruins Justice's image, then he dyes my hair ucking orange, and now he's completely ignoring me!" _If the blonde's goal was to send Bass into a blood rage, then he had done a fantastic job of it.

A bestial huff grunted out of The Bull, the resolve in his body bubbling up to the surface like lava. To him there was no doubt in his mind that today was the day that Naruto Uzumaki would die.

**"Begin!"**

In an instant, Bass had cleared the space between them; his fist already reared back. Like dynamite the energy within the limb exploded, propelling it forward with the force of sledgehammer. The power behind it was so great that it caused the air surrounding it to shake. A single clean blow of this magnitude to the temple would have easily felled a full grown adult male, let alone a high school student.

Such a thing would surely get him reprimanded for harming an underclassman during a training exercise but he hardly cared. Naruto Uzumaki had the balls to show him up on his own turf; putting the cocky bastard in his place would be well worth a little slap on the wrist. Besides, it wasn't like training accidents were that uncommon – he probably wouldn't even get suspended for it.

But as Bass began pondering a means to argue against a sentence he'd receive for knocking the blonde's lights out something strange occurred. By now his fist had extended to its full length and yet the call for the end of the match had not been sounded. There was no hastily made announcement, no cheer of approval, no calls for a medic, and most of all no thunder-crack of his fist meeting bone. In fact, the only thing it felt was breeze ruminating from the air conditioning unit bellowing above the indoor stadium.

The blond standing six feet away from his original position, scratching his neck dully. "Wow, you sure are slow. Was your personal trainer a sloth or something?"

Bass growled in discontent. He flared his fangs; his hands balling up into fists as he returned to his original stance, his opponent still as relaxed as ever. The verbal jab had not gone over his head. Contrary to Bass' thuggish appearance he wasn't stupid (you couldn't really afford to be in an academy like Justice). He knew what his opponent was trying to do. When goaded into a rage, a fighter become much easier to handle. Power behind one's attacks hardly mattered if they weren't thinking straight enough to have them connect.

"So you've got some skill after all." The tactic lead him to a boil but he would not let it get the best of him. "Good, it's much more fun watching a bug struggle before you squash it!" Bass called before commencing his assault, weaving from left to right with his forearms shielding his face. Once within proper range Bass stepped around Naruto's "guard" taking a shot at his opponent's flank.

The strike was directed with speed in mind over power: a maneuver that was meant to disrupt a fighter's defenses by forcing them to dodge or shift their stance in order to avoid it. By focusing so much on the feint they would leave themselves unprepared for the follow up attack.

Just as expected the blond began to compensate for his exposed side by twisting his torso in order to properly react to the blow. However, that was the last the time that the scenario played out according to plan.

The chime of a point rang out in Bass' favor. A flash of confusion ruffled his brow. There was no way he should have been able to land that jab given how shiftily he had witness the Uzumaki dash out of the way of his opening strike. That being said, he wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Even if the initial punch had been greatly reduced to shorten the travel time it still had enough force to shake a normal student's form.

Following up on the opportunity, Bass channeled the energy within his legs up his abdomen and directing it outward in the form of an explosive strike courtesy of his opposing limb.

Incidentally, whereas the first punch seemed fated to miss but had landed this strike that appeared guaranteed to land was the one that missed.

Bass hadn't even seen his opponent move before he felt a knee make contact with his exposed abdomen, his arm still outstretched to meet a face that was no longer there.

Another **[ding] **sounded. The older teen's body braced for the pain only for it to never come. It was almost as if not a single ounce of force had backed that strike, with only enough strength mustered for the sensors to register a clean hit.

When Bass whipped around to re-position himself to properly meet his fellow teen's attacks he had to turn a full one-hundred and eighty degrees before his eyes laid upon the blonde's form; now even further back than he had been after the first attack.

Brown eyes winced in thought. Just how did he cover that much ground so fast without him noticing?

* * *

"What is he doing?" Lightning thought out loud. Even since the fight had begun every engagement had been the same - Bass and Naruto would have a quick engagement; points would ring out in either of the participants' favor; then the latter would proceed to break off and put as much distance between him and his adversary as possible. "There's no way he'll win like that."

On paper the strategy was fairly sound. By forcing your opponent to initiate you gained the upper hand by leaving them open to retaliation. Herself, personally, had seen plenty of professional matches where the number of blows thrown by the victor could be counted on two hands. Couple that with the amount of energy the opposing party would have to expend chasing after their opponent and you had an effective (if a tad bit cheap) approach to fighting.

That is to say it worked...but only if the one enacting the strategy was competent enough and patient enough to uphold it. From what she had seen, Naruto was neither of those. While he was fast and agile enough to avoid attacks and make space, he was far too reckless; often going on the offensive at inopportune moments that could cost him points in the long run.

Granted, the match itself was more of an assessment if anything. He only had to do well, not win. That being said, didn't warrant his rather sub-par performance thus far. At this rate he would just barely eke out enough points to pass. And without any extra points to pad for him needed to win this fight.

"Ya know, for someone named Lightning you can be pretty slow at times." Sice verbally jabbed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lightning huffed.

"Try looking a bit more closely and maybe you'll understand what I'm talking about Your Highness." Sice answered, not at all perturbed by her peer's tone.

Lightning gave a huff before turning back to the fight. She wasn't sure what Sice was getting at but her pride would not allow the girl to be the only one able capable of picking up on things that others could not.

Although the act began as a form of spite it quickly evolved into something more as the Vanguard followed her colleague's advice. Leaning forward, her eyes taking in every detail.

"What in the world?"

* * *

Basiano "The Bull" Winchester was pissed. But not for the reasons that one would expect.

A devastating hay-maker was thrown. Another point was scored...barely. He should feel happy but he didn't.

A flurry of blows flew; blindingly fast and expertly coordinated, each hit hell-bent on being the last. And yet, somehow not even the air from that impressive display had scathed its target.

A move popularized by small time thugs and a technique that he had learned from a professional trainer. For all intents and purposes the first should not have landed. Nonetheless, the opposite continued to shatter expectations.

This nonsense is what he had to deal with for the entirety of the match.

Wind whipped past, an indicator that he had quickly picked up on after losing sight of his foe countless number of times during. . . whatever this was. Turning in the direction that the wind flew past, Bass' vision stumbled upon the sight of the blond – his form once again several meters across from where he should have been.

Upon laying eyes on the Uzumaki's form there could only be one sensible conclusion to that question. Bass shot a glance at the score board, scrutinizing the nearly dead even point values between the two with a critical eye. He then turned back to the relaxed stance that his opponent carried himself with. While Naruto had been content to earn points simply through physical contact the force that Bass backed behind his assault was real. But despite this, Naruto continued to carry himself with that lazy posture of his. However, that isn't to say that Bass' punches were light (in fact some of them had been thrown hard enough that the stinging in his fists still hadn't left since he had delivered them). It was just that any damage Bass had managed to land hadn't phased him in the least!

Knockout strikes were blocked; whole combos redirected; grapples had been stepped around with ease.

From the very start Bass felt that there was something fishy about the blond who had single-handedly thrown away Justice's victory. There was no way some nobody would step up to challenge him so quickly unless they had something up their sleeve. Only in this case instead of pulling a rabbit out of a hat, the Uzumaki might as well have squeezed an elephant into a thimble. Bass couldn't even begin to delude himself into believing that he had any control over the situation. Any points to his name couldn't so much be called "earned" as they were "allowed". Had Naruto not been so keen on getting such a lousy score this fight would have ended a long time ago.

The bully growled under his breath. The nerve of the bastard; playing him like some kind of a fool! He couldn't let something so humiliating slide.

But what could he do? As much as he didn't want to admit it the blond was better than him. He'd have to think of something to slip him up, make the asshole sloppy enough that he could go for the areas that a person couldn't just shrug off a hit from no matter what they did. But how?

Naruto took a straight punch from "The Bull" with gusto, his own fist pressed against the bully's side dealing not a single shred of damage as always. A dual chime echoed throughout the gymnasium.

Bass frowned. It appeared that he would need more than just one hit to shut the blond up.

"Is this really the best you can do?" Naruto mocked coyly, flashing him a grin. "I've been hit by thirteen-year-old girls who pack a bigger punch than you."

_"That could work." _Bass pondered after taking stock of Naruto's words. A despicable grin warped his features. "Speaking of thirteen-year-old girls, you've been getting pretty friendly with one recently."

"Serah? Sure, I like to think we're friends." Naruto said casually. His brow furrowed. "Why?"

"Doesn't it bother you though? Her being here and all." Bass answered, watching with a calculating gaze. Their bodies never once pausing.

Naruto allowed his foe to continue.

"Just because that big sister of hers is a member of The Vanguard she thinks she can do whatever she wants. Lounging around while us students have to go to hell and back just to take classes."

"Get to the point." Naruto demanded firmly. He didn't like where this was going. He had no idea that people could think that way about such a sweet girl.

"What I'm trying to get to is that I'm not the only one here who isn't happy that she gets to waste space while we suffer."

"…"

"Look, from what you did to me..." Bass shot a glance up at now orange hair, "you seem pretty good at getting even. If something were to, I don't know, happen to her. I'm sure I could pull a few stings to improve that reputation of yours."

Naruto remained silent, as if he were thinking it over.

Bass flashed his fangs. It was obvious that he cared for the girl but the thought of making his shitty situation better would surely tear him up inside. What he ended up actually doing mattered very little. All that mattered to him was that the conflict within would mess Naruto up enough to provide an opening that would allow him to pummel the son of a bitch into a bloody pulp.

All of a sudden the blond froze in his tracks as if he had just now come to understand what Bass had asked of him. Blond locks shadowed deep blue. "You...want me...to betray a friend's trust...just so you can get off on her suffering..."

"Not a bad deal, right?" Bass said whilst using the pause in his opponent's movement to reel back in preparation for his next strike. "Whaddaya say?!" He called, launching a punch carrying all of his weight behind it.

Naruto raised a listless palm in response.

Bass nearly lost it at the pathetic display. No martial artist worth their salt would meet a blow head on like that. He didn't think injecting his thoughts with that little gem would mess him up so bad that he would do something so stupid.

Naruto didn't so much as budge as the fist entered his grasp.

The bully's eyes nearly widened into saucers as claws of diamond wrapped around his hand. Any attempts to wrench himself out of the blonde's grip only proved futile.

Just then Naruto pulled the larger boy closer, his eyes reemerged to greet Bass'. A shiver as cold as death ran down his spine.

"No deal." Naruto growled, a fist following immediately after as quick as the wind. Bass didn't even have the time to register the searing pain rippling through his navel before he was sent sailing clear across the arena and into the wall.

**"Uh...Winner by ring out Naruto Uzumaki!" **The professor overseeing the event rushed out. Their attention so focused on calling a medical team to retrieve the second year that they completely forgot that displaying such force was supposed to result in a disqualification.

The entire gymnasium froze at the end results. Not a single soul dared to speak.

With the room so quiet the adrenaline quickly left his system. Blinking as he pulled his fist back, the reality of what he had just done dawning on to the blond like a ton of bricks.

Before the room could regain their senses, Naruto shoved his hands in his pockets then proceeded to storm off.

His victory leaving a sour taste on his pallet.

* * *

Seeing his reaction Lightning trailed after her blond roommate with wide strides, locking on to his path with pin point accuracy.

She knew that he had noticed her by now with how fast he began to carry each heavy step. Clearly, he didn't want to speak to her about the matter but that did not dissuade her in the least. If anything, it made her want to ramp up her pace even further to demonstrate how little she cared for his privacy.

The pair continued like that for some time. The drum of feet hitting marble tile being the only sound that carried through the hall.

Naruto craned a glance in Lightning's direction as she persistently matched his cadence. He gave off a deep sigh. If her level of determination was anything like his, it was only a matter of time before they'd be blasting through the academy at a full sprint.

Reluctantly, he came to a stop. "What do you want?" He asked. His voice coming on with much more bite that he had shown her previously.

"During your match with Bass, you were holding back weren't you?" Lightning's said, going straight for the elephant in the room.

He didn't give a direct answer but his silence spoke volumes.

"After watching for a while, it was clear that you were stringing him along the whole time. If you're that good then why not just end it from the start? It would have looked much better if you actually showed what you're capable of."

Naruto turned to face the rosette. "This is what I don't like about people like you..." He growled, a hand dragged through unruly sun-kissed locks. "Always jumping at every chance you get to show off..."

"And why wouldn't I?" She asked in confusion. It seemed counterproductive to not display her skills when there were people willing to pay in order to back the students with the most promise?

"...Have you ever bothered to wonder how everyone else feels when compared to you? How worthless they feel after working so hard only to get out-shined completely?" Naruto said, his words dripping with a contempt born from experience.

"I don't see how that has anything to do with me."

"Of course you wouldn't."

"That's beside the point, why did you do it?" Lightning pried in an attempt to get back on topic. "Don't you realize just how many people would kill do be in your place? You should be thankful that you even have this chance."

"...Thankful?" Naruto questioned softly. "...You think...that I... should be thankful for being stuck in this place?"

Lightning simply continued to glare at the blond, unwilling to back down until she got a clear answer.

"I never asked for this! Unlike you I have better things to do than spend all day playing soldier." Naruto erupted, his tone suggesting that this was about more than just going to school.

"I don't get it. "A hand instinctively made its way to the lightning bolt shaped pendant she always wore around her neck. The rough texture tracing across the pendant's smooth surface a testament to her efforts. "How could someone like you be here when so many others had to work themselves to death just to be considered?"

"Newsflash! In case you weren't paying attention the day I way dragged in but it's not like I came here willingly. For all good that got me." He had accepted the "job" with the expectation that he would still have close ties with the government. A school could only provide so much of the information he needed. "Who in their right mind would actually want to be in this place?"

Suddenly, Naruto felt knuckles rapping across his cheek with more force than any of the punches that he had allowed Basiano to land during his match. When his vision refocused he found fire flaring within Lightning's eyes. "Don't. Let me. Ever. Catch you saying that. Ever Again."

Naruto scoffed, returning her glare with one of his own. "Or what?"

"Oh hey; Naruto, Lightning!" Serah called while turning a corner, oblivious to anything that just happened. "My class ended early today. Do you guys want to go get something to eat together?"

"No thanks. / Not hungry." The pair said in unison.

"Okaaay then I guess we'll just have lunch at our dorm then."Serah said catching on to the tension in the air. However, instead of acknowledging this, the two broke off in opposite directions.

"Hey, where are you two going?"

"Out. / Training." As the pair separated the young Farron was left alone feeling as though she had missed something very important.

* * *

-Bodhum: Residential District-

With a weary sigh Sice entered her apartment. Dumping her things into a corner the girl made a beeline toward the fridge, rummaging through its contents to pull out a half finished carton of juice. Unceremoniously, she uncapped the lid to drain the other half of juice straight from the container.

As she closed the fridge door the sight of the same silver haired woman who had introduced Naruto to Justice could be found sprawled out on the living room floor.

"Seven!" She cried out, the juice carton spilling on to the kitchen floor as she rushed to the woman's side.

"Sis, look at me!" She pleaded, shaking her sister hysterically. "Don't look over there; look at me! **Look at me!" **The world paused as Seven's eyes shot open; pink eyes radiating with an existentially inhuman glow. Then, just as quickly as they had opened they were once again hidden behind their curtains.

"Are you okay?" Sice called as her sister's eyes fluttered open.

"Would it kill you to use a glass?" Seven groaned weakly, glancing at the liberal amount of juice that was now coating the floor.

"Would it kill you to come home not smelling like the ass of those big, stupid animals you take care of?" Sice snorted, letting out the breath she hadn't known she had been holding.

"Hey, don't call them that. Those 'big, stupid animals' are helping to keep ungrateful girls like you safe." The elder spoke in defense of her position as a Beast Tamer, the luster returning to her voice. Sice gave a short chuckle as her sister began to go on and on about how important the monsters were to the well-being of Cocoon's inhabitants.

Sice's laughter slowly died within her throat. "Your pink eye is getting worse."

"It's not pink eye!" Seven protested with a huff as if to dissipate the suffocating feeling in the air.

"You know what I mean." Sice interjected sternly, a serious mask dawned on her face.

Seven turned away from her sister. "Yeah, yeah it is."

"How often?"

"…"

**"Tell me."**

"I don't know okay!" The elder sibling cried as she brought herself up to a sitting position. "They're~..." She trailed off, searching for the right word. "...Sporadic. There's no rhyme or reason. Sometimes it's more often, sometimes it's less but all I know is that it's never been like this before."

"There must be something we can do-!" Sice shot up but a hand latched on to her wrist.

"Sice..." Seven begged, a crest resembling a circle bordered by feathers sparked like static for the briefest of moments.

"Right," She sighed out before sinking back on to the floor.

There was nothing that they could do.

There had never been anything they could do.

* * *

**Author's Note's: Feel free to leave any questions, comments or concerns in a review. I read them all and will attempt to address what you have to say to the best of my abilities. **


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